Aftershocks version 39
by Some Guy 329756789-01A
Summary: Aftershocks. A Pokegirl setting wherein Authors, or their aliases, find themselves within the hell of their own creation. How? Why? Will this version of this author find out? At this point, I've been through 3 different versions of this setting, and I just genuinely don't care, so you're warned. Rated M. SHAMELESS self-insert with different name. You've been warned.
1. A Whole New World

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Pokegirls originally came from Metroanime and I literally own nothing. I am not making any money off of this, and I do not plan to profit by this endeavor.

/Run

Celaboner was a nice city. It was a monument to the human ability to rebuild after disaster. Towering buildings, several entertainment districts, and a massive sprawl of residential neighborhoods all in the center of the continent. Plenty of gardens and parks, cared for by the Celaboner Gym and it's leader, who had what some might call an unhealthy 'appreciation' for Plant type Pokegirls. The Two-Hearts Ranch was also a big draw, for it's raising and sale of elemental Pokegirl breeds of all stripes. The Casinos, situated in the entertainment districts, were the biggest draw for out-of-towners. They were the reason so many flocked to the Game Centers of Celaboner. Hotels, gambling, and all situated in a metropolitan location giving the place a certain 'city that never sleeps' kind of feel along with 'what happens here stays here' vibe.

So, when a young man woke up in a hotel in one of the many casinos? It would normally not be an event to note. When one takes into account that the bed he awoke in was not the one he remembered going to bed in, considering the atmosphere of Celaboner, it was even less noteworthy. Even considering he awoke to the odd sensation of someone in the bed with him would be considered so mundane in Celaboner that it'd be more noteworthy if he hadn't.

But when the man named Markus awoke to these things? It was cause for concern. For you see? He'd gone to bed last night in his home in Minnesota, in his own bed with only his cat for company, and she refused to be near him when he slept because he would move about in his sleep. It took him a few moments to realize that things were different.

First, the bed was decidedly not the second-hand mattress he'd had previously. He was too damned poor to afford any kind of new bed. Secondly, when he opened his eyes the ceiling was entirely different. He hated to mentally make the Evangelion reference, but it was there. Thirdly and most importantly, while the air conditioner was running and the room was cool (To his taste, since he hated being too warm) he was not in any way cool. Even discounting the somewhat flimsy covers he was under (Another difference, given that he had specific tastes for his personal bedding which involved colorful designs and such) he was still nice and warm.

Why? Because of the slightly more clear tactile sensation of someone being in the bed with him.

Now, Markus was not a heavy drinker. Not by a long shot. He'd have a beer here and there, maybe a few shots of rum every now and again to relax, but to wake up in what looked to be a hotel room with what looked like a very attractive young woman using him as a body-pillow, whether she was fully clothed or no, was something of a panic-inducing nightmare for the young man. With social movements as they had become in his life? It was scary. If the girl wanted to? She could very well claim he'd raped her, and no matter how drunk HE might have been, he'd be at fault. Even if they'd both been drunk off their asses, the woman's story was usually believed, and the man involved was considered to be responsible while the female was considered to be beyond reproach.

This was one of the many reasons Markus had avoided the very concept of being in a relationship, and in fact privately called them 'relation-shits' after he'd heard the term on Youtube.

He was naked. She wasn't. Strike 1. The room smelled of sex, now that he was awake enough to realize it. Strike 2. He had to have gotten beyond drunk at some point, to the point that he didn't even remember getting drunk, or the days prior in which he'd decided to take a vacation, use some of his piddly paycheck to check into a hotel, and then get himself drunk enough to go against his deeply-ingrained fear of personal contact with the female of the species.

As he nearly tumbled out of the bed in a panic, the girl rather obviously woke up and stretched, showing off a certain physique that, if this were one of his sessions of surfing for porn, would have made him immediately click on the thumbnail to see what she'd do.

The woman had soft features, despite seemingly having no body fat whatsoever, and long blond hair that looked like something he, himself, would love to have if his job hadn't forced him to cut his goddamned hair...

That was another thing. He had his goatee and his long hair back. As Markus fumbled about, he saw that his hair was back to the length it had been before his employers had told him he needed to cut it, and his goatee was even better than it had been! He missed that beard... More than he missed being unemployed, since he'd begun growing it back despite it 'not looking professional.'

He internally scoffed as the thought passed his mind, right before his train of thought got derailed once again by noticing that the girl wore a collar. It was a very well cared-for and very high end collar, not a simple strap of leather with a buckle. It looked to be made of dark leather embossed with what he recognized as 'angelic script' from his few trips down the rabbit hole with Christianity. The underside was lined with black silk or cotton or... he couldn't tell, only that it was apparently soft given the way it contoured around her neck. The very front of it held a small bar of metal which, if his eyes didn't deceive him, read, 'Salohiel. If found, please contact Markus W.' followed by his cell phone number.

Now, he knew the name. He'd used it many a time for various angelic-style characters he'd written, or he'd played in his Tabletop RPGs. But to then see his name... ON A COLLAR... being worn by a girl who could only be described as 'Perfect...' was not something his sleep-addled brain was ready to cope with while still trying to boot up necessary systems.

Such as the sudden need to go to the bathroom. He couldn't tell if it was to throw up or to evacuate in the other direction, but his body moved on auto pilot. Nakedness ignored, his need for the bathroom overrode that pithy concern. If he was going to go to prison? He'd go comfortable and not needing to use the police station's 'inmate bathroom.' he had enough privacy issues, damn it.

"Master?" The voice of the girl came just as he pulled the door closed behind him. Nope. He didn't hear that. He was kinky in his mind, sure, and would have likely done a lot of work to get that kind of thing going with a girl, but hearing it in his 31 year old cynical mindset was not something he ever expected to happen.

It was only after his body decided to allow him the dignity of only needing to go numbers 1 & 2 that he finally began to calm down. When he went to the hotel room sink? He finally got a look at himself.

He looked... Different. A bit more healthy? Like he spent more time outside, maybe? Bit more time at the gym? He'd learned the basics of Capoeira, Muay Thai, and Karate, sure, but he'd never had the willpower (or the time) to go into it as deeply as he'd wished. It was a source of shame for Markus that he'd given up... Still. The vision in the mirror told a different story. Instead of the belly he was used to seeing he saw a chest more defined and a stomach that didn't stick out over his waistline... Sure it wasn't a six- pack, but it looked like with a bit of effort he might be on the right track for it? And he wasn't wearing his glasses? He'd needed those for years since he was 5 years old! And yet when he looked back around? He could see just fine. Like he could when he was wearing his glasses!

What. The. Fuck.

Markus might not have had the willpower to stay in karate, but he was proud of what he did have at that moment. Enough to not faint given that he was naked in an unknown bathroom with a girl outside wearing a collar with his name on it, the room smelled like sex despite the possibility that nothing had actually happened due to said girl being fully clothed.

When he came out of the room he saw that same girl sitting on the bed watching the T.V. On the screen was a news anchor he'd never seen talking about things that plain didn't make any sense. Leagues, regulations, championships... OK, that last one made some sense, but how was this news? Was she watching ESPN?

The girl looked up at his reentry to the room. "Master!" she cried, throwing the remote to the bed. "You scared me, there! All you needed was to use the bathroom? Must have been some need to have you rolling out of bed, eh?" she asked as she grinned. Her voice was like music. The kind of voice he'd always imagined belonged in a choir singing hymnals or hallelujahs.

"Um..." Markus tried to think of how to respond to all of this, but failed. Instead? He simply went to where he saw his pile of clothing and began to put on the clothes... he'd assumed they were his, anyway. The boxers, pants, socks, and T-Shirt were plain, black, and they fit him. The shoes were different to anything he'd owned in the last 10 years, though. Good solid boots, those. Black leather that went up to his calves, solid soles of good rubber with a good traction-enhancing pattern... They reminded him of the boots he'd loved to wear when he was a teenager and didn't have to shill out the $150 price tag when he'd needed a new pair.

The jacket was also something he'd wear, but never remembered owning. All of his jackets were either from second-hand shops or the low-quality kinds you'd get from, like, Walmart.

This one? This was nice, supple leather lined with silk and seemed to have been made specifically for him. The patches showed that it had been through hell and back and still stood the tests of time and the elements and god only knows what else.

"Master?" The voice drew mark back from his musings on the clothes.

"Uh..." Again, a lack of words, but then his brain got going again. "Yeah? Salohiel? This is gonna sound..." he chuckled nervously, "absolutely insane, but I think I'm in the wrong place? Where, exactly, am I?" he asked. "And... Don't take this the wrong way but... Who are you?"

The blond, dressed now that he took the time to appreciate it in what looked like a business suit fitted to her voluptuous form, blinked a couple of times before getting up and putting one of her wrists against Markus's forehead.

"No fever... And my Aura should have taken care of anything else." she said, mostly to herself. "Master? Are you playing with me? That joke about... 'banging me like a drum' and 'fucking my brains out?'" she asked. "I mean, I'll admit the sex was nice last night, but you know I like it best when we're outside under the open sky."

It was Markus's turn to blink, now. She was an exhibitionist?

"Uh. No? I'm serious, here." he said, trying to remain calm. "I really, REALLY don't want to get into trouble, and I don't even remember getting drunk enough to wake up... wherever the hell we are. Let alone do so with you in a bed, in a hotel I don't remember coming to."

Salohiel's eyes hardened a bit. "Master. This isn't funny. This joke has just passed the point where I might have laughed and gone into the land of 'annoying.'" she said, her voice gaining a bit of an edge.

"I know. If this IS a joke, I'd love to know the punch line, because I just woke up with a woman wearing a collar with my name on it, in a hotel I don't remember coming to, in a room that smells fadingly of sex. The last thing I remember is going to bed in Minnesota... oh god, what'd I do with Duchess? That cat's gonna kill me if I didn't leave enough food for her..." he recalled his cat, again. Duchess was his 'pretty kitty' after all. If he'd left her with his roommate while he went on vacation? That'd be a nightmare when he got home.

"Who in the nine Hells is Duchess?" Salohiel asked, suddenly very confused. If her master was telling the truth, and not just taking a joke too far, then this was a very strange situation. Normally even her master knew when to drop the joke with her. He'd made a few such jokes before, but she always made sure to let him know these days when it stopped being funny and he'd drop it.

This time, not so much.

"Duchess is my cat." Markus said. "Adorable little black cat. I'm slightly worried that I might have left her back in Minnesota before going on this little vacation?" He still wasn't sure what was going on... This was like a surreal mix of 'Dude, where's my Car' and 'The Hangover.' he had no idea where he was, he had no idea how he'd gotten there, and he had absolutely no clue as to what was going on.

"Master... What's Minnesota?" Salohiel asked. She'd never heard the word, before.

"Minnesota? The state? Upper Midwest? Known as the most temperate region on the planet? Actually declared 'unfit for human habitation' back in World War 2, ya know. Mainly because the winters are a nightmare." he said, recalling the fact because it always made him laugh a bit at having been born and raised in such a place.

"Master, States haven't existed for the last 300 years. There are only the Leagues..." Salohiel was hoping to dispel this madness with a bit of fact.

"Leagues? Like, the football leagues? Major League Baseball? Sports leagues and such?" he asked, dreading the answer, because the only 'league' he'd ever really paid much attention to were fictional. Pokemon games and... more 'mature' content found on the internet.

"As in the Indigo League, Johto, Blue, Edo, White Lotus..." Salohiel listed off, confirming Markus's growing fear.

It took him only a moment to respond, and when he did he summed up his thoughts as eloquently and succinctly as he possibly could.

"Fuck me running. Sideways. With a rake." He said.

Salohiel smiled. "Not into the kinkier stuff near the end, but the first two words seem like a wonderful idea." She said, showing off perfect teeth in that smile. "But first? Let's examine the facts. Firstly, we're in Celaboner City. Second, We're in the Hotel Battle Royale after a night of 'stimulating' nocturnal activities preceded by gambling and a bit of light drinking. VERY light drinking. Third, we've been here for two months." She listed off the current facts of the situation as she recalled them. The pertinent ones, anyway. "Anything to add?" She finished.

Markus nodded. "One, My name is Markus. Two, you have a collar with my name, and a cellphone number I recognize as mine. Three, You've mentioned Celaboner City, which implies, lord help me, that I'm in a world I thought only existed in the digital pages of a niche fetish fiction community. Four, The last thing I remember before waking up here is going to sleep in my own bed, in the room I rented from my buddy from community college... The fact that I am here right now greatly disturbs me, and I can't help but wonder if this is a hallucination brought on by too much stress, if I am dreaming and this is just shameless wish-fulfillment, or if I'm actually here, real, and not any of the previous. And no, pinching me doesn't work. That's a big myth. You always 'feel' pain in dreams, but you don't actually 'feel' it because the mind will always try to keep a dream going if it's not ready to wake up." He sighed, seeing the girl was getting ready to do just that.

"Well, Master? It sounds like you've got a problem. Because I'm still feeling the Alpha Bond, and I'm not going to go through the hassle of abandoning my steady source of Taming because of a slight hiccup. We've been through this every Sadie Poken's Day for the last four years since you got me." Salohiel said, keeping her voice calm and patient. She'd dealt with insanity before. The less said about the last Tamer she'd had, the better. The man had tried to keep a Neo Iczel in the Harem and wouldn't 'give in' to her taunting and attempts to become the Alpha.

"So... What Breed are you?" Markus asked. "I can take a few guesses, based on the name if I'm the one who gave you that name, but I'd rather hear it straight from you." He explained.

"Angel, Avenger Subtype." Salohiel said, smiling. "You always say that I act more like an Elysian than an Avenger in private, but that's just how I am. You did give me a new name when you got me, because me being named 'Miss Fluffyfeathers' was in neither of our best interests if we wanted to be taken seriously."

"Miss... 'Fluffyfeathers.'" Markus repeated. "Who the smeg would name a human-like being... Miss... Fluffyfeathers?" He asked, still trying to come to terms with the words, and coming out haltingly because of it.

"My former, and first, owner." Salohiel shrugged. "I don't pretend to understand it. I told him my original name was Julia, but he just didn't care. When you bought me off of him? We discussed it, and you, being my owner, thought 'Salohiel' fit me better. I think it does, too, and gives me a bit more credence as a Celestial type."

"Well thank fuck for that, at least." Markus said, somewhat relieved of one potentially embarrassing worry... now he 'only' had to deal with the fact that he was, seemingly, in the middle of finding out that the Multiverse Theory was in fact correct and that he had somehow managed to traverse the barriers and he apparently had a life in this world where he was fairly certain one had not existed previously. Only.

With that thought in mind Markus took out his phone, which was of a make and model he'd never heard of, and began scrolling through what he'd assumed were contacts. Each was was associated with a picture (something he never cared to do on his iPhones...) and most of said pictures fell into two categories.

Benign, such as his 'Mom's Cell' contact showing a picture of a much healthier and more active figure he recognized in broad strokes as his mother wearing exercise clothing and smiling at the camera, likely inside a gym of some kind... His 'Dad's Cell' contact, which showed a man who looked again much healthier and more active but looked much closer to his mental image of his dad than his mother's picture.

And Pornographic, such as nearly every picture not associated with a name he recognized. The fact that a majority of those contacts were listed under the subcategory of 'booty call' disturbed him, greatly.

Markus had never been one for the act of sex, after all. He'd tried it. Three times, in fact. Same night, so he only counted it as once, but he'd tried it! It wasn't his favorite pastime. Porn was more his thing, which made him wonder often whether or not he was just a voyeur. To find out that this 'version' of himself? Had over 30 people in his contacts list, Salohiel included, under his 'booty call' contact group? It was rather surreal. And a drastic left-turn from what he knew of himself.

When he pointed the 'phone' at Salohiel, during his pacing, the stupid thing BEEPED at him, shoving aside the contacts listing and showed him a display of Salohiel, her battle record, her physical stats, even her GPA and the T2s she'd been put through such as 'cooking,' 'house-work,' and 'Finance Basics.'

"Wow. Did I put you through those T2s?" He asked. "I didn't even know 'Finance Basics' was a thing..."

"Yes, you did. At least the finance and Housework ones. Cooking was from my old owner." Salohiel supplied the answer happily. Her Master's change in personality was odd, but then, she'd met Pokegirls who'd undergone a Level 4 and even level 5 Taming Cycles. Radical Personality Change (RPC) wasn't a common thing amongst humans, let alone Tamers, but it was a noted phenomenon nonetheless. "I'm glad you're done panicking?" Her voice tilted in tone upwards near the end, turning it into a question more than the statement as which she'd started it.

"Oh, I'm still utterly terrified right now, but given that this is either wish-fulfillment dreaming, or reality? I'm gonna roll with it, for now. When I see the Holodeck beneath the veneer, that's when I'll start worrying in full, again." Markus explained, going through the apps on what he now recognized as a very nice model of a Pokedex.

His finances were, seemingly, in the 'comfortably stable' range, with investments listed under the name of the man he'd used for his IRA account in 'the real world' as he thought of it. Either this hallucination was really thorough, or this world had a lot of commonalities with his own. his father was listed as a retired Watcher who'd become a Researcher focused mainly on computer technology rather than on Pokegirls... Another big difference from his memories of the world he'd written and played in before. Most Researchers seemed to be utterly focused on studying, and some might say exploiting, Pokegirls for the advancement of technology. Turned out that there were, in fact, a bunch of League-employed Researchers focused on more mundane subjects.

Markus found his own licensing as a Tamer, though he only had Salohiel listed as being a member of his Harem. The license was dated back to, based on some quick math and looking at the calendar, Markus would have been 23 years old... About the same time he'd gotten his driver's license in the 'real' world. His Starter was listed as having chosen a new owner during that Sadie Poken's Day festival...

"Wow. Am I that bad of a Tamer?" He asked, laughing a little. "I mean, I've had my license for almost 10 years, now, and I've only got one Pokegirl to my name? The rest have all left during the Sadie Poken's Day Festivals since then. Angela, Mary, Sarah, Susan, Aki... Wow, I lost a Kunoichi to salvage. That's painful to my ego... Then lost the Shieldmaiden I had left the next Sadie Poken's Day? Jesus H. Christ, that's painful." He sighed.

"Well... not to put too fine a point on it, Master, but your ambitions so far have always been to make just enough money to survive and little else, moving from place to place, selling off all but a small core of Pokegirls you chose mainly for their looks rather than personality and Harem Compatibility..." she listed off his seemingly many failings as a Tamer one by one, each one felt like another punch to his fragile little ego. Small stones flung via catapult at the glass dome of his psyche.

"But..." she continued. "When we met? You were about ready to call it quits. We've been tooling about for about 4 years, now, master, training me up and trying to get enough money to buy a Shield Stone..." she finished by wrapping her arms around him from behind. "Don't worry, master. We've had this talk before, but since you don't recall it right now? You're mine and I am yours. Until we either reach the Championship, or we both retire happy and wealthy at the age of 45 to spend the rest of our days sunning ourselves on the beaches of Cinnabuns Island... Or maybe to become Rangers at the Safari Zone National Park." She finished with a grin.

Markus was taken aback by the tone of her voice. She actually cared? he could tell she did, in fact, by the way she spoke. She was simply stating facts, not making vague promises or leading him on. he'd gotten very used to that, and somewhat good at recognizing when people were doing it. No, she was actually honest about it. She actually cared. Not just 'gives a shit' but actually *cared* about him and this goal.

Markus had never won anything in his life, aside from that karate tournament when he was, like, 8. The tournament for White - Green belts, anyway. Markus sighed and looked down at the phone's readout of the girl in front of him. In the display, she had her wings out and fully extended. The stats, from what he could see, were rather impressive for the sole member of a Harem, and a mid-level evolution like an Angel.

"I dunno how I feel about any of this." Markus said. "I mean, I just woke up to find out, effectively, I've been in as committed a relationship as one can be in when taking into account the world in which I find myself... In a different world, apparently? Yeah. I'm in a different world. Or my world got so rapidly fucked overnight I missed it and about 300 years... Last thing I remember is that it was 2019... But according to what I know of this world, which bee-tee-dubs I smegging WROTE STORIES about, that would have been over a hundred fifty years ago..." he looked at the device again, and the readout of Salohiel's stats.

"As a side note? My inner power-gamer says these look good? Have we tested you recently? What kinds of training have you done?" he paused for a moment and patted himself down. Finding what he was looking for, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. "Oh, thank you Jesus..." he said as he pulled one of the little white sticks out and lit it. Taking a drag and holding the smoke in for a moment as it burned his lungs, he relaxed slightly.

"You're not supposed to smoke inside." Salohiel said. "But that's why we got the smoking room, I suppose." she shrugged, grabbing one for herself from the still-open pack and lighting it.

"Something about seeing an angel smoking is just adding the perfect level of surrealism to this whole thing." Markus noted.

"Quit complaining master. You and I smoke all the time." Salohiel said around the cigarette.

"Valid, I suppose?" Markus was unsure. HE had only just met this girl. Still, if she smoked? She smoked, and he wasn't gonna withhold cigarettes from someone. He wasn't that kind of asshole. Still, he flipped through his 'Dex a bit, through the various apps installed. 'Halls of the Mountain King' looked to be a game, despite the reference to a piece of classical music. Likely used it as a theme or something. A few RPGs by the looks of things... Some reference apps, books by the dozens, a few dozen movies, some of which he recognized, others he'd never heard of and several more that looked to be porn.

After the cigarettes had burned down and their heads were pleasantly filled with their fix of nicotine, Markus and Salohiel sat down at the small table in their hotel room.

"So." Markus began, "I need to know where we are, in terms of goals, finances to reach those goals, and other less monetary resources. Right now I know I have you, a fairly stable income from investments and such, and a 15 year end-goal of retiring to a semi-tropical island to a life of luxury and leisure... OR getting into the Championships, of which I can only assume is meant the Indigo League Championship tournament, likely with the main goal being given the rank of Harem Master... Could never figure out why that'd matter. I mean, it's great to be the best at something, but it'd be you and other Pokegirls doing all the damned work, wouldn't it?" He sighed. "Then there's the fact that it'd do nothing but paint a gigantic target on your back for any one of the numerous team and Team-Like organizations."

Salohiel nodded. "I just know that *I* want to be recognized as one of the best Pokegirls in the world, one of the most respected, most powerful, and most beautiful."

"Wow. An Angel with ambition AND an ego?" Markus asked, genuinely surprised by this, since he'd always mentally ascribed such things to the more... Infernal breeds.

"Just because I'm a Celestial type doesn't mean I can't want to advance. Humility is knowing when to stop. Stupidity is stopping before you have to." Salohiel countered, a bit of a defensive tone in her voice overwhelmed by the teasing smile on her face. "Besides. Someone in this relationship had to have ambition." She said, giving Markus a pointed look.

"I think, given a few weeks to adjust, we can both agree that ambition will no longer be in short supply in our dynamic." Markus nodded. he'd already, behind the fear and concern that this might all be the result of a psychotic break or whatever drugs he might be on in some hospital somewhere, begun planning what he might be able to do.

The words from the book 'The 48 Laws of Power' rung in his mind as his plans began getting a little too far off track. 'Plan to the end. Plan contingencies and alternatives. Don't let emotions or dreams of the 'happy end' get in the way.'

With that thought in mind, he brought up n app designed for goal planning and started a new file.

Goal: Full Harem.

Wants: Magic Types, Fire Types, Fighting Types. NO PSYCHIC TYPES.

~target of Opportunity: Demon-Goddess, Neo Iczel, Sayjin.

~ Avoid: Megami, Dark Lady (Salohiel's a Celestial, newb,) Mazoku (TT_TT)

Step 1: Evolve Salohiel via Shield Stone to Archangel.

Step 2: Light gambling, to gain game Coins.

~Have: 980

~Need: 12,270 for full plan.

~Desired prizes: Witch, Slicer (Optional: and Video Girl.)

Step 3: Battle.

~Choose carefully. Ferals, for the most part, to gain bounties and salvage rights.

Step 4: Acquire enough money to pay for a good bike.

Step 5: Acquire Pokegirls and breeds which compliment one another. Bonus points for templates.

Goal 2: Acquire Fame/Renown.

Step 1: See goal 1.

Step 2: Reinvent Image.

~Ideal image: Confident, ambitious, competent.

Step 3: Challenge Gym Assistants in Celaboner to gage strength, and check necessities.

Step 4: Safari Zone.

~ Avoid Mantis pokegirls at all costs.

Step 5: Make certain to train MYSELF as well, since being known only as a tamer = Bad in long term.

Step 6: Repeat as necessary until respected in Tamer circles of at least 3 cities.

~Anything after that is Gravy/Bonus/Not Needed.

Goal 3: Find out wtf happened.

Step 1: Polite Inquiries into Dimensional travelers.

Step 2: Create persona of an interest in how such things work.

Step 3: Gain access to academic studies on subject matter.

~ Acquire access to several other subjects as well, as smokescreen, but don't be afraid to explore. One never knows.

With those things written down, though goal 3 wasn't quite complete yet, since he had no idea what he'd do with the information on what the hell had happened if he ever found it, Markus was satisfied with his two main goals. Gain a full harem, like any self-respecting male might do if given the opportunity and ability, and gain fame and renown. He'd been a nobody in his old life. With a smaller population (less competition,) and a decent plan, maybe he'd be able to pull it off? Maybe a bit of chicanery might be required. Or outright lies.

Salohiel leaned over Markus's shoulder as he was typing out his plans and goals. "Well, that's certainly new." She said. "You never used to use that app. I think your dad bought it for you, but most of our plans have been 'improvise.'"

Markus sighed. "Improvisation only lasts until the next crisis. I see I put funds in a safety account, with investments to make money in return. That's good. Looks like I was learning, slowly, to plan ahead."

"Somewhat." Salohiel said, leaning back again and turning the TV back on. "You're definitely different today, though. You used to doing that, now?" She asked. Her Master had always been one to play things by ear, more than anything, and while she admired him for it, it also got him into most of his trouble.

"Not really." Markus sighed, slumping. "I'm training myself to think ahead and plan things out, but I'm still getting used to it. Used to live paycheck to paycheck, without much concern for the future."

"Sounds like you, alright." Salohiel remarked as she changed the channel from the news to a movie channel. "I kind of like the change, just don't go getting too rigid on me in your plans and forget spontaneity."

"If I forget? I have you to remind me, don't I?" He asked.

Salohiel stopped watching the TV for a moment. That comment really hit her right in the headspace. This really *wasn't* her Master, was it? He looked like him, sounded superficially like him... even walked like him. But it wasn't him inside. Her master had never even tried to rely on her for anything but emotional support, financial knowledge (AKA: "Salohiel? It's Tax season. here's the computer with all the data. File them for me, would ya?") and maybe the occasional back-scratch.

Never to remind him of things. Her master hated reminders when he didn't set them on his 'Dex, and even then if they didn't shut the fuck up soon enough he was prone to bursts of anger at the device.

Finally, she spoke. "If you wish, Master." She said, a cautious tone to her voice.

Markus noted that, but filed it away for later. "Thank you, Salohiel... now. What do you think oof my plan? Right now, knowing the Celaboner Prize Center's exchange prices and the prizes available, I'm looking at a Witch, a Slicer and a Video Girl, if I can get them. The Video Girl is optional, since it's the biggest expense, but I always wanted one." He was a sucker for the anime the Video Girl breed was based on, sue him.

"Not a bad combination, so long as you don't just pick the first ones they show you, Master." She said. "Or pick them solely for aesthetic qualities like hair color or hand shape or weapon of choice or some nonsense. bring me with you when you do, and I'll help interview them. not only to make sure they don't swindle us, giving us a problem-Pokegirl for the same price as a prize example of the breed, but to make sure I can get along with them."

Markus nodded. "You got it. let's deal with the Witch, first. We can do that today, see how things go with her, and see if we need the Slicer or if we can find one elsewhere, like at a Ranch. I've got the money for the Shield Stone, we're just waiting for the market to get one in, right?" He asked.

"We placed an order for one, but it has to get here from Stone Town. Shouldn't be more than another week or so, master." The angel supplied.

"Good. I want you evolved as soon as possible, so we can gage how that affects your stats as it is. Once that's done, we'll do a full workup and test of your abilities." Markus noted the changes in his planner app, making notes as he went for various thoughts and proto-plans.

Breakfast was spent in much the same way, with the two of them talking. Markus was trying to both get to know the girl he'd apparently be working with and get his plans situated so they wouldn't backfire in his face, as this incarnation of him seemed to have run into so often.

Salohiel was getting to know her Master for the second time... This version of him seemed... Excited? Like he was a kid in a candy shop. Like a new tamer, almost. She caught him reading Taming for Dummies during breakfast, even! When she'd met him, he was already cynical and jaded. 4 years ago, she'd left her previous tamer at the Sadie Poken's Day celebration and found this depressed looking older Tamer, near the age when most would retire to some other profession, sitting in Cerulesbian City and people-watching... She'd talked, and he'd explained his situation. No reliable home, no reliable income, no Pokegirls with which to attain a reliable income as a Tamer... he was near to retiring in shame. A bit of fun later and she handed him her Pokeball, mostly out of curiosity to see if she COULD help him.

For the next 4 years, he'd played it 'safe.' Minimal expeditions into the wilderness to capture ferals, long hours of training, and investing what money they did earn conservatively while basically living off the land and going from Pokecenter to Pokecenter.

They'd spent a long time in Lavenderriere, with her practicing against Ghost types and him learning about ghost types. he had a slight fetish for the darker types, even if he was training a Celestial, and always wanted an infernal to 'round things out.'

This 'new' Markus, however, had specifically put down in his plans for a full Harem to *avoid* infernals. If he was anything like HER Master? Then he likely wanted one, but would avoid it due to the inevitable conflict... Which was a good sign. It meant this new Markus might actually have a brain in his skull, rather than just the one between his legs? She was hoping, at least.

The reasons Markus had put down to avoid Infernals did, in fact, involve the conflicts between Celestials and Infernals... but mainly it was because he had absolutely no intention of dealing with the potential for them to somehow report to Hild. behind a computer screen? That shit was fine. Sexy, even, but if it came down to it? He'd rather rip his own arm off than come face-to-face with a Legendary... maybe Moan, but that was still heavily iffy given the whole 'no psychic types' hardline policy he was instituting. The ONLY psychic type he'd consider would be a Shieldmaiden or a Barriermaiden, and ONLY if they chose to fixate on him... He might not have lived through it, but the shame of losing a Shieldmaiden to that fixation being on another member of the Harem was palpable.

As the early morning passed into 'brunch/late morning' times, Markus and Salohiel could be seen exiting their hotel room, placing the door-sign saying 'please clean' on the knob, and leaving the hotel through the nearly abandoned Casino floor.

The Prize center, as Markus remembered it from his times playing Pokemon, was beyond different. it looked like a mix between an auction house and a warehouse with a hint of 'model runway' thrown in. The two of them were greeted by a smiling woman. Markus couldn't tell if this was a Pokegirl or not, but Salohiel grabbed his hand and let her wings come out of... Wherever the hell those things go when they're being hidden.

"Welcome to the Prize Center!" The girl exclaimed happily. "My name is Mina, How can I assist you today?" The girl asked.

Markus nodded at the introduction. "Well, I'm Markus. I'm looking to spend some of my game coins, but I was hoping we could take a look at the selection. Specifically, Witches." He almost went on to explain, but that'd just give them reason to hold back the good Witches, so he'd be pushed to spend more on a Slicer.

"Of course, sir!" The girl nodded, her hair bouncing along with the movement. "Right this way! Would you like a 'one-by-one' runway style display?" She asked, leading the Tamer and Angel off to a series of halls and doors.

"Interviews, if possible, please. I'm sure they can all comport themselves well physically, but since it's a Witch we're dealing with, I need to make sure their style matches my planned harem layout." Markus said.

Salohiel nodded. "Wouldn't want to accidentally pick a Necromancer when we need a Diviner, for example."

Markus winced... he'd totally bang a necromancy-focused Witch into next week...

The girl smiled as she led them to a door. "I can have the Diviners set up first, if you'd like?" She offered.

Markus shook his head. "Nah. It was an example. I'm more looking for someone good at Evocation, or Potions, but generalists are my preferred fare, since i'd like to evolve her to a Sorceress and eventually an Archmage." He said. "Hence the interviews. I'm looking for potential and compatibility. Salohiel is an Angel, who's going to be an Archangel by the end of the week, so any infernal tendencies are a hard 'no' even if I don't mind 'black magic' specialists."

Salohiel nodded, and the girl opened the door for them to a room with four chairs, a window into a room that looked to be made of tiles on every surface save for a single door in or out. Salohiel guided Markus to sitting down, and took a seat next to him on a stool with no back so her wings could be out.

"I noticed that." Markus said, gesturing to her wings. "Why take them out?" He asked. They were beautiful, just as he'd always imagined them, but the question begged an answer.

"Simple, Master." She said, shrugging, ruffling the feathers as she did. "They were starting to cramp, being hidden away, and I always feel vulnerable without them out."

"Then don't hide them when you don't absolutely have to." Markus said, trying to affect a tone of command despite feeling ill at ease doing so.

Salohiel easily caught the slight hesitation of his discomfort at commanding her to do something, but smiled slightly nonetheless. "Yes, Master. As you wish." Then her face was back to the calm, cool stoney expression she'd had all day while in public. She WAS still an Avenging Angel, no matter how much she could appreciate her Master in private.

The door to the room opened up, and twenty young women, seemingly in their late teens to early 20's, entered the room. Each and every one of them was dressed in a uniform black-and-white color scheme, wide-brimmed pointed hats, and cloaks clasped together by a broach in the shape of the Celaboner Prize Center's logo. The only things that set them apart were the individual features they all possessed and the numbers printed on tags hung around their necks. All of them wore collars Markus could only assume were power-inhibitors and anti-teleport capable.

Salohiel immediately reached to push the button for the intercom into the room. "Numbers 3, 9 and 17? Please exit." She said. The three girls, a brunette and two blonds, walked over to and out through the door. When the button was released, Salohiel looked to mark and whispered, "Power-Hungry. I could see it in their eyes. They'd do anything for an edge, including make certain unacceptable bargains."

The explanation was enough for Markus and he nodded, taking a look at the girls in the room. He pondered for a moment before a feeling of nostalgia hit him like a train. "This shit's just like the fucking 'online dating' experiment." He laughed.

After a few seconds, the only human male involved in this sordid affair pressed the button. "Anyone who can't take a joke or make a joke at their own expense, please leave the room. This includes jokes about your tits, your ass, and your ability. I want someone with a sense of humor, but not to the point of not being able to take anything seriously." He said.

Several girls left the room, leaving him with about 15 Witches. He pushed the button again, "Evocation and Black Magic specialists, please step forward, along with Divination specialists, if you will."

Three of the girls stepped forward. One was a cute redhead with bright red eyes and sharp features. not an ounce of unnecessary body fat on that one! The second was a somewhat more mousey-looking girl with glasses and blond hair tied into a braid which draped over her left shoulder to hang down her front. She looked like she was trying not to cry at being told to step forward. The third and final Witch that stepped forward stood a full head taller than the others, and looked to be in her mid mid 20's with deep purple hair loosely hanging down to her lower back. numbers 5, 7, and 14.

Markus nodded in appreciation at the sight. "Numbers 5, 7, and 14, I'd like to continue this to an interview, do you know if this is possible? Or am I forced to do this out here in front of everyone?" He asked.

Their guide from before's voice popped up on the intercom before any of the three could answer. "For a nominal fee, yes you may. it will cost 1,000slc per hour, no Taming, though, and no damaging the merchandise!" The chipper and cheerful voice said.

Markus nodded. "Numbers 5, 7 and 14, please go to wherever you wait for a one-on-one interview." He said into the intercom before continuing after they'd exited. "Can anyone who specializes or has an interest in necromancy please step forward."

When none of the remaining 12 stepped forward, Markus and Salohiel both sighed. One out of disappointment, the other out of relief. Salohiel pushed the button, this time. "Anyone with skill or interest in healing Magics?" She asked.

One of the girls stepped forward. Black hair, brown eyes, and a kind smile on her face. Number 18.

"Number 18, please join the Interview group." Salohiel said into the mic.

Markus nodded. Having a dedicated healer was a must in any D&D party, so why not here? Not like he expected a Rapha to fall into his lap, literally, unlike some of the stories he'd written... After a few seconds of shifty-eyes, Markus settled back to looking at the remaining Witches in the group shown to him.

"Any of you deal with spirits of a non-necromantic sort?" He asked. Three raised their hands and Markus continued. "Of you three, do any of you have any interest in binding those spirits to physical objects of power?" He asked. Might as well draw on his Gaming knowledge from other genres, right? Couldn't hurt...

Apparently it *could* hurt, since all three left of their own volition.

"Well, that worked out." Markus groused. "Like a lead balloon..."

Salohiel reached for the mic again, "Has anyone received formal or informal training involving their desired areas of specialty?" She asked. None raised their hands and Salohiel sat back in her chair.

"I was afraid of that..." she said before sighing deep. "Most of these girls are likely either claimed by the League for being in storage too long, claimed from dead Tamers, confiscated from those who had their license revoked, or they're straight off the Ranch." She explained when she saw Markus giving her a questioning look.

"We've seen enough. Thank you, ladies, we'll let you get back to whatever you were doing." Markus said into the mic before standing up and walking to the door. The Witches filed out of their side of the room while Markus and Salohiel made their own way out of their room, only to be greeted by their guide.

"Did you have fun?" She asked. "A lot of the time, most people just assume we give them a randomized selection of our stock. Like a roulette wheel of what they're going to get. But that'd be stupid, don't you think?" The girl asked as she led them through another series of halls to an interview room. "We want people to *want* to come here and spend their money and coins on our merchandise, after all, and making it a craps shoot whether what you get is compatible with what you wanted? Not a good way to do business. Best we can do is rank their costs based on breed." The girl waved a hand dismissively as she opened the door to what looked like a comfortable waiting room with a long couch, a few chairs set up in various places, a free soda machine with little clear plastic cups next to it, and a coffee machine next to that with white ceramic mugs for the coffee. Markus beelined to the soda... Blessed, icy cold, caffeine.

The Witches they'd told to wait for interview were then shown in one at a time. First up was number 5, a red-haired athletically built young woman of about 5ft tall.

"Yo." the With said by way of greeting, holding up a 'peace' sign. "I'm the Queen Bitch, Number 5. Call me Johnny and I'll laugh as I'm castrating you. Explosively." she said.

Salohiel hid a smile behind her hand, but soldiered on with the first question. "What's your area of specialty?" she asked.

"I'm a Black Magic Expert. Attack spells and abilities are my usual fare, with a few minor enhancement or status-effect spells like burning someone, freezing them, or paralyzing them, though I love explosions." The girl grinned manically at the thought of 'very big booms.'

Markus and Salohiel glanced at each other before continuing.

"What is your favorite spell, and why?" Markus asked.

The girl shrugged. "Ain't got one. They're all tools. Picking a favorite means you start looking for reasons to use it, rather than a situation in which it is best. I like flames, but sometimes Lightning is better, or water… or even, heaven help us, Summoning something that can do what we need, rather than trying to figure out a spell for it and wasting time and energy on research."

Markus nodded at that. He liked practicality and pragmatism. His next question came out without much trepidation, as it was something he was genuinely eager to know. "What do YOU get out of me buying you?" He asked.

Number 5 blinked. "What?" She asked, trying to get the thought clear in her head. "What do *I* get out of it? Nothing but a steady dick, I suppose. Whatever freedom you allow me in researching or learning new spells… The possibility to advance?" She offered. "I get a lot less than you, though. You get an awesome Witch like me who legally and biologically can't reject you telling her to warm your bed and defend you when you're out in the wilds."

Markus nodded at that. He was still trying to figure out if this world he woke up in was as he'd imagined it… if it was even real.

Salohiel sighed. "OK. So you get a bit more freedom, and Markus gets a new Pokegirl with the potential to be an arcane power, but right now? He's getting a young Pokegirl, barely into adulthood, who likes to blow things up." She clarified. "Do you have any other areas of interest besides Black Magic?" She asked.

"I can brew some simple potions, never really had instruction in the stuff and what I can make is by touch, you know?" At Markus's nod, he'd done most of his cooking by the 'does this taste right' method, she continued. "I can do basic summoning, low-end stuff like summoning messenger birds or summoning a distraction. Banishment is more my deal on that front." Number 5 leaned forward a bit and propped her head up with her hands, her elbows on the table.

Markus made note of that in his 'Dex app before asking his final question. "Where did you grow up? Was it on a ranch? Or in a family unit?" He asked.

"I was born and raised on the Two-Hearts Ranch." She responded, not really seeing why that was at all important. "I had my mother, a few sisters, and the ranch owners. I'm a Domesticate, in case that wasn't clear. No Threshold for this badass Queen Bitch Witch!" She grinned wide at that, but waited for whatever was coming next.

Salohiel and Markus both made notes… Salohiel's notes were concise, logical, and clear… Markus's while clear since they were typed out in digital format, were more along the lines of someone flipping between 'want' and 'do not want' with reasons beside them.

The duo nodded to the girl and asked her to go into the waiting room ad send in Number 7. Number 5 scoffed.

"Good luck if you choose her. She's so shy i'm amazed she even stood forward." She said, giving the two a wave before heading out.

The blond Witch came in, next. Her glasses were big, thick, and obviously bargain-barrel 2-for-1 frames for $20, if Markus's estimation (long years of buying those same glasses…) was anything to go by.

"I…. I know how this is going to end." The witch, Number 7, said in a voice that sounded like a mix between someone who wanted to vanish and someone who wanted to cry. "I… I saw this." She said. "I'm… Number 7. Lucky number. Important number." She began rambling, but was cut off by Salohiel.

"I assume, then, that you're a Divination specialist?" The Avenging Angel asked.

"Yes. Divination, Numerology, Astrology, and potions." She said. "All things I can do alone, I know." She'd taken the words right out of Markus's mouth… That'd get…

"Annoying, I know." The girl said, seemingly shrinking in on herself. "My visions show me how things can go. The most likely outcome, and they usually change fairly quickly." She sighed. "I'm Number 7, Divination and Potions are the main reason you'd consider me, but the fact that i don't have much control over my power, just like most Witches though in an 'entirely annoying way' will be why you don't pick me." She said. "I… I was a Feralborn. I learned to speak English by T2, and the rest at a ranch near Vale Academy before I was sold to Celaboner City because the ranchers didn't think I was worth the investment. I kept telling Tamers their futures, but they never liked it. It's not my fault…" she sniffed. "A lot of them were bound for mediocrity or death. Everyone wants to hear they'll be the next Champion… or something." She trailed off after that and seemed to be shaking in her seat.

Markus looked at Salohiel, trying to figure out just what he felt about this whole thing. Sure, the visions were annoying, and her cutting him off because she knew what he was going to say before he said it was aggravating, but she was so *cute.* And he'd always loved Divination as a concept. To find himself in a world where such was not only real, but *reliable?* He could deal with the annoyance, couldn't he?

The girl sighed. "You'd try." She said. "You try, and within two weeks, you'd sell me off, or trade me to a collector, or straight-up give me to a Researcher." She said, her voice tinted with the sadness of what was likely a severe Cassandra Complex.

Markus, however, looked at Salohiel and grinned. The Angel nodded slightly, despite her own trepidation… Her master had told her what he'd done before, going for aesthetic qualities over substance, so she *was* worried, but she was his Pokegirl, he was the Tamer.

"Well, Number 7? Let's see if we can't change Fate, shall we? I'm fairly sure that if I did sell you off or give you to a Researcher, Salohiel here would beat me black and blue for days, and likely not let me touch her for years. If I wanted, I could probably find a more combat-focused Pokegirl, but I think it'd be a more wise choice to look for a support 'girl." He grinned. "That and I think I'd like to see how you handle being out and about."

Number 7 looked up at him for the first time since entering the room. Sadness filled her eyes as small sparks flitted across her pupils. "You will certainly try." She said, morosely. "But you'll get tired of me and my visions in a few weeks. You'll try to use them for your advantage, but you'll find that I'm too much trouble to deal with."

Salohiel smiled. "Even Megami can't tell the future with perfect accuracy." She said. "You said it yourself. You see the most likely future, right?"

Number 7 nodded.

"Well," Markus started, holding his hand out for her. "There you have it. Most likely is not 'inevitable.' If you'll have a go, we'll get the 'prize' portion of this out of the way, yeah?" He offered.

Number 7 sighed again. Her vision had said he'd interview her, send her out to tell 14 to come in, and she'd never see him again. She'd been hoping to avoid the heartache of being rejected *again* by just cutting to the point. Instead she got purchased for 750 Prize Coins… And a new name. Pythia.

The establishment of an Alpha Bond is one of the first things people should always do when they obtain a new Pokegirl, Whether by capture, trade, or purchase. This is one of those things a lot of Tamers take for granted, because the way to establish said Alpha Bond is to screw their brains out. To Tame them. Pick thy euphemism.

When Markus, Salohiel and the newly named Pythia returned to their Hotel room, the group knew it had to be done. Salohiel, used for so long to being the only Pokegirl in the duo's dynamic, shrugged off the small surge of jealousy. Instead of dwelling on it? She decided to grab one of the credit chips and, after verifying the amount on it and moving a small amount of extra 'padding' for her little spree, left.

New member of the harem meant more clothing for the newbie, extra food, and all sorts of other things… That and there was a cafe advertising free pie if you bought a full meal, and she was in the mood for pie. With ice cream, damn it all. In fact? Ice cream after the pie sounded great.

Her shopping, with identification on her showing she was, in fact, tamed and owned, kept her out of trouble with any moron thinking only with his dick that an Angel wandering alone might be 'up for grabs.' Not to mention it allowed her to move about the city without really worrying about being taken in by the police for wandering about. She was more used to Viridick City police department, not Celaboner's. Hopefully she'd never have a run-in with them. The less blue hair she saw? The better.

The clothing shop was helpful. They had a selection of general designs, and Salohiel was able to give generalities and still come away with some good picks for casual clothing for her new 'sister.' And she knew HER Markus's tastes… how different could they be? Men were men, after all.

He'd probably regret passing up the others. A Healer would be good to have, and a dedicated attack specialist with the versatility of a pure Magic type was nothing to sniff at. But she agreed that the poor Divination specialist might be worth the investment… if she could get over her visions long enough to realize that the future was anything but set in stone.

Salohiel knew several Megami. The Celestiial breeds usually got together during Sadie Poken's Day celebrations, to discuss, confer, and generally have a bit of fun amongst themselves, and she'd had several conversations with the Megami that would sometimes show up. And while they did, in fact, always speak in riddles about the future? Salohiel was old enough to see through the younger members' attempts to misdirect. They saw possible futures. That's all. They saw probabilities. The future was a raging storm of possibility solidified only in the moment into a single line. To attempt to do so magically would take power beyond any even the Celestial type allowed her to feel. Infinity is a strange concept, since it could be infinite in a single dimension of reality, but completely useless against something infinite in 2 dimensions or more.

Honestly? Thinking about the various potential theories out there hurt her head, so she simply _didn't_. She was an Angel. If Markus and her had their way? She'd be an Archangel by next week. Her job was to serve, avenge wrongdoing, and to be an example of the light at the end of the tunnel. Not to ponder high theory of the universe and the Powers That Be.

The food at the cafe was nice. She got herself a nice salad with a good vinaigrette (no croutons, thank you) Some warm bread with olive oil and seasoning… And then that glorious pie. Peach Pie, made with proper peaches cut in the back, not the canned crap some places used. A small scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of it, still hot from the baking making the ice cream melt in rivulets across the flaky crust glazed with just a bit of sugar…

And she still got her damned bowl of ice cream afterwards. With caramel sauce. Worth every credit.

With Markus and Pythia, however, things weren't entirely going to plan. Or to trope. Depending on how one looked at it. Markus had written several stories on this. He'd read even more. But literary experience in the situation did NOT prepare him for the immanent reality of it. He was standing in a hotel room with one bed, the T.V. Set to a daytime talk show (He hated them, but he didn't want to risk his presumptions about the cartoon channels being accurate. The talk show was risque enough, thanks) and a painfully shy and almost morose Witch in front of him.

Pythia, she was still getting used to having a proper name, looked at the man who'd bought her from the Prize Corner. She saw several things. The most likely outcome of this encounter would be him being dissatisfied, despite 'getting his rocks off.' Her chances of getting off were minimal, as well, due to two new partners still feeling each other out and trying to get used to the differences between current and past experiences. Her own biologically-induced ease of getting off was negated, somehow, by an experienced Tamer *not knowing what he's doing.* It was rather frustrating, but the poor girl had been rejected from about a week after she'd been Tamed onward.

It was awkward. Markus didn't know how to go about doing this, let alone starting it. His actual experience in this arena, his timeline anyway, was a grand total of 3 times in his life, all in one night with one girl, and had resulted in him thinking several times about what shows he might have been missing on Cartoon Network… he didn't know if that was because he'd been desensitized by porn, or if he was just not interested in the actual act of sex so much as the lead up. He knew he was good enough at the lead up to make the 'main attraction' decent enough if he had some time to explore, but this was a whole new situation.

He'd literally just fucking spent money, which he'd gained by gambling like fucking arcade coins at the prize desk, on a sentient, thinking, living, breathing female… Of a near-human species, granted, but that wasn't the point! If he were in goddamned Star Wars, he'd be no different than a Hutt buying a goddamned Twi'lek slave girl! AUGH!

He'd gotten caught up in the excitement of 'new world! New me! New possibilities! Yay!' To really think about the moral implications of just what he was doing. During the interviews? He'd been more interested in possibly finding out more about magic, or seeing if his imagination had done the Witch breed any justice (It didn't. Real life is always more intense than imagined scenarios…) that he'd completely forgotten, or ignored, the fact that he was there to exchange currency for what, by his memory of the legal status, amounted to a sex slave. A biologically engineered non-human dependent upon human interaction *sex slave.*

"Well." Markus sighed as the thought killed whatever wood he might have been growing. "Fuck." He said, summing up his feelings on the situation once more in the most succinct fashion he could.

"I-isn't that… What we're supposed to do, now?" Pythia asked, looking at Markus curiously.

"Yes. Yes it is. But I'm at about no-mast, at the moment. No roll of quarters. No flag-pole." He sighed. "I just realized I just fucking _bought_ someone. Some_ONE_." He emphasized the part of the word that was the bother at the moment. "I…" he sighed.

"You're going to explain." Pythia said, seeing it in her mind what was about to happen. "You stumble a bit, but you tell me about how you, yourself, are not from this world, though you have a body here and a history."

Markus nodded. "Minnesota." He said. "I'm from Minnesota. United States of America. Year 2019. Dunno what the fuck's happened, but I woke up this morning…"

"And found yourself here. You got caught up in it all, and went with what you thought you'd need to do to blend in and survive. Survive what, though?" She asked, not necessarily at her new Tamer. "You seem worried? Worried about the possibilities of psychic types, when I suggest trading me in for an A-Bra…"

Markus paled at the thought of getting any kind of psychic type. Nope. All aboard the Nope-train to Fuckthatshitville.

"Much like that, yes." Pythia nodded when she looked at Markus for his reaction, confirming her vision. "I can understand why. All signs point to that being a generally bad idea."

Markus nodded, regaining his color only when he'd affirmed mentally to never get a Psychic type, if he could help it. "I don't suppose you would like to just, like.. Cuddle for a bit? I mean, we can put off the Taming for a bit, right?" He asked.

Pythia nodded. "We can. I'll let you know when I need it. For now, I agree, we should get to know each other. I've seen visions of possibilities, but you might be able to surprise me?" The petite blond shrugged and then sat on the bed.

Markus followed suit and just sat on the bed, turning the T.V. Volume up and switching to a movie channel. Apparently they remade the goddamned Indiana Jones movies! Philistines!

That the titular character got laid regularly and often on screen was not an improvement, in Markus's eyes. Seriously. Why did they have to make Indy a Tamer for these things? Ah well… At least they updated the plots slightly? And he couldn't fault the special effects. Good lord, Temple of Doom was downright _watchable_ when you took out the little kid involved and replaced him with a Shadowgirl.

Yes. It was still disturbing, knowing the base material, but… When in Rome? That was Markus's bullshit justification and he'd stick to it. By the end of the movie his arm was over Pythia's shoulder and the blond, sans hat now, was leaning into him a little bit.

One thing the Witch refused to acknowledge was the minor possibility she'd seen. One of herself, powerful, respected, and loved wearing robes of collected starlight and peering deeper into the future than she'd ever dreamed of attempting.

/End


	2. Betting and Common Sense

This is the beginning of chapter 2.

A/N: Here we go again…

/run

A few days had passed since the acquisition of the newly-named Pythia. She was still getting used to it all. Her new owner… her Tamer, didn't seem displeased with her? He seemed genuinely intrigued by Divination as a whole. The first night she'd spent with him wasn't spent in the usual, almost ritualistic Taming she'd learned (by gossip) to expect. Instead it was spent on the roof of the hotel they were staying at, with him asking her about the constellations and how Astrology actually worked, trying to learn for himself what things meant.

It was odd, trying to explain things she knew instinctively. She'd gotten tuition to help refine her natural gifts, certainly, but being asked to tell someone about the deeper meaning behind what she already knew was a new experience. Especially when the most physical thing he wanted to do with her at the time was put an arm over her shoulder.

The big thing about Divination wasn't that it allowed one to peer into the possible futures. It's main focus was upon the finding of information. It was, historically, related to Necromancy, which got it's own start via the summoning of the spirits of the dead to divine truths about the universe only readily available to the dead. Pythia didn't like summoning dead things, though. The thought always gave her the creeps, and Undead were just so very unpleasant to be around. The sickly smell of decay and rot were not her go-to perfumes, thanks.

So when her new tamer asked if she could show him, say, what was going on in City Hall? She simply took out a bowl, poured some water into it (bottled from the soda-machine nearby) and ran a finger along the edge. Light shimmered within the water as she felt the magic go to work. Soon, they were looking at an image of the mayor's office. It was dark, since it was night and the office was closed, and nothing was happening, but the point had been made, proof undeniable that her magic worked and could allow others to see what she saw.

Markus seemed pleased? She knew some of this would happen. Like when another couple came up to the roof, laid down on some chairs put there for guest use (usually during the day) and began the inevitable process of taming what looked to be a Catgirl, if Pythia's eyes didn't deceive her. It was sometimes very odd how the brighter it got, the darker it actually got. Light pollution kept the light of the stars from being bright enough to see by (for her, anyway) but the light pollution itself didn't help overmuch when it came to actually seeing anything.

She didn't notice when her scrying spell turned to watch them from a much closer angle. Just before the Tamer in question 'drove home the point of his argument,' Pythia let out a quite 'eep' and spilled the bowl onto the ground. Completely on purpose.

Markus chuckled at her antics. He'd noticed, for sure. He didn't know if it was the couple who'd just come up and gotten comfy with themselves, or if it was some other location… He wasn't the one who cast the spell, after all. But he still noticed that her spell went right to some action. He ran a hand up her arm, thinking that was something *he* liked, Being as tactile-focused as he was, he knew a Witch had to be even more so. He remembered their 'Dex Entry' practically by rote. They had a very low pleasure threshold, and were insanely sensitive to tactile sensory input.

"Hehe. Input," he muttered. He couldn't help it. He still liked crude, juvenile toilet-humor jokes. Sue him, he was proud to be a dude.

"Hm?" Pythia looked at him from her spot, trying to keep herself from getting any excess water on her shoes and, admittedly, enjoying the sensation of his hand on her upper arm. He was using feather-light touches, rather than just manhandling her arm. It felt nice, much gentler than she'd been expecting after all the times she'd peeked on possible futures if she'd been bought by a wandering Tamer. Much better than her first time, but she WAS trying to kill that one at the time, so it was… Well. Needless to say, none of what she'd been expecting of physical contact with a Tamer was really happening.

Markus was just enjoying the physical contact, if he were being honest with himself. He enjoyed physical contact. He loved to get back scratches, he loved to have the feather-light touches, mainly because he knew it sent his nerves flying in a pleasant 'almost tickles' way. He knew he was somewhat weird, but let other people be normal. See where that gets them. So he'd continued as long as she let him. His mind was all over the place, and he needed the quiet.

Part of him was still coming to terms with the fact that he'd smeggin _bought_ someone. He'd bought a girl off a prize rack like he was picking out a particularly expensive T.V. With all attention given to whether the specifications were right. He might as well have asked if she could play Blu-Ray discs and get Netflix while he'd been at it. Academically he knew that was just the way the world he'd found himself in worked. If he wanted to get by in any comfortable fashion, he'd have to learn right fucking quick how to deal with it… It still didn't stop him from feeling like an asshole.

Another part was overwhelmed by the whole situation, and still coming to grips with it. Where was his cat? What was his life if his life was already played out here, then why did he remember his original life? What in the flying hell was going on? What if there was no 'going back?' Every story except for a few Mary-Sue/Gary-Stu stories had basically said 'you're stuck, boyo.'

For that matter? If he was taking over his own life, why in the hell was his alternate such a loser? In this world… Well, he probably had big dreams as a younger man, but the decade between them was likely filled with all the same setbacks, just in different flavors, teaching the hard lesson that the world doesn't care about your plans. Maybe he'd just given up entirely on planning, and was just trying to get by? Who smegging knew…

That was all a few days ago, of course. He'd had a few days, one of which he'd recalled both Pokegirls to their respective pokeballs and spent the whole day just watching news, reading up on the history of things in this world, and looking once more for journals, photos he'd taken, anything that would help him.

Photos he'd found. In abundance. And worst of all? Selfies. He found pictures from his teen years, him and the woman he recognized as his mom (in much better shape than he remembered her being) and his dad (in a lab.) He found a picture of his sister, wearing what he could only imagine was a school uniform for Vale Academy.

He found emails, as well. From his parents, from his sister, from his circle of friends… Luckily the 'other Markus' had organized them away from the ever-present 'booty-call' folders. He learned that he, in this life, was loved by his parents, his sister wasn't nearly as much of a woman-child as he remembered her being and had actually set up shop as a Mechanical Mage with her Pet, a Steel Alchemist, somewhere in the Crimson League doing contract work for Jahanna Corp while working on her own vehicular projects.

Wow. He was the fuck-up of the family. The one who had yet to settle down, get any kind of degree, or even consider setting up his own business. His parents lived in Sapphron City… the city seemingly dedicated as a monumental shrine to Psychic types.

Well, there went any hope he had of getting to visit his parents in the near future…

When that day was over, he'd received a message telling him that his package had finally arrived. The box at the front desk was conservatively wrapped in brown paper and packaging twine. Markus quickly grabbed the thing and nearly ran back to his room, not caring that he looked slightly crazy. He knew how much he'd apparently spent on the damned thing at that auction… Online auctions were great, when you didn't spend over one-hundred thousand credits on something that felt like it weighed ten pounds at most.

He was beginning to fear that perhaps he'd been had, given the amount of money needed for the damned thing and the fact that he hadn't had the ability to inspect the merchandise for himself beforehand… his previous self must have been either hopelessly naive or just plain desperate for this thing.

When he reached his room, he closed the door, pulled the curtains across the window, and locked the door using all three metal bars and chains the doors had available. With trembling hands, he cut the twine and pulled the paper off the box. The box had several notes tied to it beneath the paper. Taking a look at them first he read them as authenticity notifications, review appraisals, and a receipt for his purchase. Within the box itself? It was… less than impressive.

It looked like a small loaf of bread made out of dull metal. Seriously. That's exactly what it looked like. A goddamned loaf of bread made out of metal. In his hands it felt heavy enough. Ten pounds, give or take a few ounces. Still, he'd gone along with things this far, and an Archangel was a great improvement upon her less advanced 'sister' species, the Angel.

He called out Salohiel, letting her form out of the red light that was the Pokeball's capture matrix, and settle into being physical again.

Salohiel looked around. Then to Markus. "Is it taming time, already?" she asked.

"No." Markus said, holding up the stone. "It's Evolving time, Angelic perv." He teased. If there was one thing he liked doing? It was finding people's buttons. He had yet to find Salohiel's. It was how he knew which topics to stay the hell away from. Pythia's 'button' was her stature and shyness… Not her fault her tits weren't exactly 'bowling balls.'

His mind refocused when Salohiel positively squealed with joy at the thought and had to hold herself back from jumping and glomping her Tamer. Markus appreciated the effort. He almost felt bad when he couldn't think of anything to do other than….just toss the thing at her, let her catch it, and watch the lightshow.

"How do you want to do this?" He asked at last, finally giving in to the fact that he had no damned clue what he was supposed to do.

Salohiel held out a hand for the stone, silent but smiling wide. "I'll see you on the other side, Master." She said.

The moment the stone touched her hand, Markus felt it vanish, being absorbed by the metamorphosis and the flash of white light that enveloped Salohiel. When it cleared, Salohiel looked pretty much exactly the same as she had before, only with an extra set of wings… Almost immediately, her hands went to her chest, cupping and feeling her breasts for a moment before she released a sigh of relief.

"Thank the Heavens for small mercies." She said. "I don't know what I would have done if these things had grown bigger." She had enough problems as it was, thank you very much. It was only then that she noticed she hadn't really _stopped_ fondling herself, her fingers going over her nipples lightly through the cloth, which was rapidly beginning to not really hide that she didn't wear a bra.

Soon her blouse was on the floor, and her hands right back where they had been, but without the cloth to get in the way.

Markus, stunned by both the light show and the new 'show' Salohiel was putting on, was finding sitting comfortably difficult. It was the pants, you see. They got in the way of something inside which decided to make itself known at that moment. It had been a few days since he'd had any 'me time' after all, which meant certain things were building up. And trying to look up any decent porn… That wasn't spoiled by either bad acting or a far-more-interesting plot… was an adventure in and of itself in this world.

How in the hell was a guy supposed to find a 10-minute clip for some personal time when everyone seemed to want to prove to the world they could last for a goddamned hour? He watched as Salohiel's hands worked their magic on her breasts, and the way the new Archangel squirmed slightly under her own attention, and decided that… Maybe doing this first thing in the morning had been a BAD plan…

Fools rush in, after all. 'Fool, thy name is Markus.'

It took him a few seconds to work up the nerve. Here was a woman… playing with her tits, baring them for HIM to see since he was the only other person in the room and she had made zero attempts to either hide or get a corner of the bed to herself. If anything, she seemed to be *trying* to get him to look, since she was facing directly towards him and moaning as her fingers went to town on the soft flesh beneath them.

Markus, tentatively, reached out and touched one of the stiff nipples, standing tall and proud on hills of soft skin. The moment his finger made contact, Salohiel's hand was wrapped around his wrist and trying to shove his whole hand into the action.

Far be it from him to complain. He'd always liked breast play. Sadly, her wings made it impossible for him to go behind her, like he'd envisioned doing at some point, so he did what he could, and reached out with his other hand. Not for her breast, but for the waistline of her jeans. Working with his dominant hand, thankfully, he was able to unbutton it, unzip, and pull it down. A trim tuft of blond hair, exposed to the air, met his eyes… the hand he had on her breast was currently being directed by a increasingly impatient Salohiel.

Increasingly impatient meaning her other hand finished the job of getting rid of her pants, and she straddled him. With her legs on each side of his, and his hand suddenly left to its own devices, the Angel went to work on her tamer's pants as well. Since his hands were free, he began to really explore the marvelous breasts (nice C-Cups, thank God) right in front of him. He felt two pairs of feathered wings wrap around the duo on the bed, and knew that there was no way he was getting out of this.

Salohiel seemed to agree, as the moment his pants were undone and his belt out of the way, she pulled 'mini-me' free and practically drove herself down onto it.

There are times in life when a man must admit that he is, was, or has been wrong about something. For instance? Markus, for the longest time, didn't believe he'd ever actually enjoy the idea of sex. He just didn't see the appeal. Why? Who fucking cares. That moment, when the four-winged blond on his lap engulfed his dick in a silk vice, forced the man to acknowledge some things.

First off? Heaven did exist, there was, in fact, a kind and loving God who wanted him to be happy with more than just good beer.

Secondly? He'd been _wrong._ Suddenly all that talk people had made a huge point of, saying 'oh, you just did it with the wrong person' or 'was she a size queen or something?' Made a lot more sense… The fact that the girl was an admitted 'size queen' made him feel all the more foolish for judging all by that standard.

Markus as he was now, the bland 30-something man from Minnesota as opposed to the 30-something from Saffron City, could not tell you what happened in the next few hours, let alone the next few minutes. It took every bit of self control he'd developed, having a girlfriend squirm on his lap, having a girl dripping with only his fingers, or the times when he'd fuck with himself and prolong a session of 'me time' for a few hours because he didn't want to have to backtrack to find that particular porn clip again… All to not blow his load right then and there.

He had the distinct feeling it would have ended poorly for him, no matter how affectionate Salohiel might be towards him.

Instead? He pushed on, keeping himself back as much as possible. She wasn't making it easy, though. Not only was she moving her hips at a pace he was sure was going to bruise both of them, but she seemed utterly incapable of slowing the fuck down. His dick was held in a warm, wet, tight grip of heaven… possibly literally… and he had no control over this ride. All he could do was strap himself in and try not to scream.

Salohiel slammed herself down on her Tamer's dick over and over again, nearly growling as it scratched that _itch_ that wasn't really an 'itch.' It just felt _right_ to have something inside her. It felt better to have it moving in and out of her. And it felt divine to have it moving as her hips moved, rather than just straight-out sawing in and out. She would rotate her hips slightly, trying to get it everywhere she could, have it touch every inch she could. If her wings hadn't straightened out behind her already, she'd have done so just for the extra sensation… And balance. She was on top, now, she was in control, but Markus had begun trying to meet her half way, trying to go deeper than he had been with just her own efforts.

When Salohiel felt the tightening ball of an oncoming orgasm in her stomach, she kept going. When that ball released and her whole body was washed in a warm glow, she kept going, though a bit sloppier and with less force on her end. When she felt her tamer twitch inside her and the heat slashing into her? She finally let go and the two of them laid there on the bed.

Salohiel fell asleep like that, using Markus as a pillow after the bout of post-evolution taming. It was only then that Markus remembered. Archangels' Libido was listed as 'high' as opposed to the Angel's 'average.' He'd have to start battling, soonish, so if nothing else he could afford lotion. Or medicines. He KNEW they'd figured out a way to stop chafing… He _knew_ this… he kept telling himself this as he drifted off. Had to keep up the hope…

It took him a few days to get used to things, as they were… Honestly Markus was surprised that it didn't take him a month to get over the massive change. Still, he spent the next week or so just getting the hang of things, playing a few games in the casino, enjoying the games of chance (They wouldn't let him bring Pythia to the card tables…) and general nonsense. It was apparently relatively commonplace that people could win it 'big' but most people won just enough to keep them coming back for more only to lose it all.

So, like normal casinos. Sometimes you win 20,000slc, other times you go back to your room 2000slc fewer than you started. Markus mainly liked to play for the Prize Coins. The odds, according to Pythia and Salohiel, were much better in those instances, because the exchange rate favored the casino, the city, and the Prize Corner rather heavily. Still, it was fun. There was a slot machine with a Celestial theme he liked…

Markus was honestly *very* confused at his liking of Celestials… he'd always been a big proponent of the Infernals as an author. Why did his alternate have an Angel as his longest-lasting Pokegirl? Why did he enjoy having an Archangel in his Harem? Why did Markus enjoy having an Archangel in his harem more than he thought he'd ever enjoy having a Demoness, Succubus or Dark Lady?

Okay, that last one was oft a pipe-dream of his. The darker part of his brain, anyway. He had some pretty dark thoughts, owing mainly to chemical imbalances and such… Which was truly odd since he hadn't had a mood swing since he woke up. Maybe Salohiel's Aura of Healing? Long-term exposure might have helped? Who knows if this physical version of himself even had that problem? Either way. He liked the Celestial-themes slot machine much more than he'd thought he would.

The fact that Pythia could help him decide how much to bet on a given spin, and which angles to take, was helpful…

"Master?" Pythia had beegun when he'd first asked for her insight. "My visions show possible futures. The most likely to happen. Have you never heard of what happens to those who try to meddle with temporal mechanics, cheating chance.. All that stuff?" She asked.

Markus had pondered that for all of two minutes before discarding the thought. It didn't make any goddamn sense. Why would magic give visions of likely futures only to then turn about and make things difficult if the people it gave those visions to try to utilize them.

"What will happen if I do?" He asked, thinking for a moment to be a bit cautious, rather than throwing caution to the wind.

"Nothing. But it's not wise to tempt fate." Pythia said, shrugging. She'd known he'd do this from the moment they'd met, after all. Everyone did it. Magic types, psychic-types, et al were often used in games of chance to stack the deck. The only reason it wasn't illegal (for slot machines, that is) was because it had only a slightly better chance of winning than doing things normally. It'd taken them 20 years worth of studies to figure that one out. Still, tempting fate was never a good idea.

"Fate-shmate." Markus waved the concern off. "If Fate has plans for a pissant like me? Then someone upstairs has *way* too much time on their hands."

For once? Pythia had to agree, despite the common wisdom of not tempting fate, pattern-recognition was more to blame for most superstitions. Humans had a bad habit of seeing a series of events and implying causation. One of her first lessons with her 'Big Sister' from Vale was a simple verbal equation.

Co Ca. Correlation does not equal Causation. Friday the 13th is a magical day, to be sure, but people tend to remember the bad things that happen on it more clearly because of the mental connection to 'bad luck.' Numerology, thankfully, was all about the math of divining the future, and True names of beings. Astrology, however, was all about Correlation and Causation. The difference between the old and new systems was the magical significance of the stars in relation to the mundane. Astrology was always a subtle thing, at best, rather than the all-consuming thing some people had turned it into before Magic was studied.

Still, utilizing Pythia's ability to read the future did give him a small uptick in his Prize Coin winnings. She wasn't allowed to help him at the blackjack tables but he was still managing to come out a bit ahead, there… Credits flowed like a river in the casino, after all, and all he had to do was be careful about where his went, and how many he got in return.

With that week, coming to terms with everything that was going on, having sex and actually enjoying it for a change, and light gambling, Markus ended the week with a hefty amount of Prize Coins in his account, and a little bit richer than he'd begun the week. His hotel stay was still paid for the next few days, thankfully… but still, he was beginning to feel the coming need to get the fuck out of there.

He was thankfully able to afford a T2 for use later. A general compilation of basic information should he catch Ferals. Why he didn't have that beforehand was odd, but Markus figured the other 'him' just used whatever facilities the Pokecenter had. He'd taken a look online for information on just what was in the standard 'English T2' and it was… strangely bereft of a lot of nuances. Higher end models, the kinds you could buy for a few hundred dollars (Converted to slc, 1,000) had more information… Sure, he had to get the disc shipped from Sapphron City, but his disc would, hopefully, teach a Feral a bit more than basic information. The disclaimer stated that it'd still take time and practice to get things down, but the basic information would be available. Things like 'basic history' and a more nuanced understanding of the english language. Basic math, which would then lead into his currently-owned Finance Basics T2, was also included.

Taking inventory of his actual equipment showed he had some rollerblades, a folding bike, camping-style cookware, a few weeks worth of meal packs, and what looked like an extension to his backpack which acted like a miniature Pokepack. Inside it contained a few dozen pokeballs, a couple of changes of clothing, a tent…

That certainly explained why Markus hadn't seen a tent anywhere. Probably had to fold it up pretty tight to fit into the small extension…

In other pockets of the backpack, he found several small cases of medicines, D-Tox and the like, along with salves, creams, and other assorted nonsense meant to make life as a travelling (Vagrant) Tamer a bit easier.

By the end of his little inventory, Markus was exhausted of trying to account for the things he'd found, and trying to piece together when he might have gotten which item. The cookware was well used, as was the sealed spice collection, but the medicines looked to be barely touched. He had a store of Prize Coins… he could totally afford a Slicer, and it'd round out a three-Pokegirl team nicely to have a good dedicated Fighting Type involved…

Markus tried to think of it as being like ripping off a band-aid. He'd have to get used to buying (And… Selling) pokegirls off. Especially if he went out, caught Ferals, and sold them to ranches and the League and such. So, with heavy steps he made his way to the Prize Corner.

Slicers were far more popular than Witches, so the demand was higher, and thusly Markus was not allowed the leeway of interviewing. Instead, he got a choice between three examples of the breed. And two of them were right out.

The first girl looked normal enough. Brown hair, green eyes, and a toned physique Markus would have killed to just be able to touch 'back home.' But her weapon of choice? A Scythe. Not in Markus's wheelhouse at all.

The second was similar, though her hair color was slightly on the 'pink' side of 'blonde.' She looked attractive enough, but she glared at him like he was nothing more than the lowest form of dirt she didn't even want to have to scrape off the bottom of her shoe, and the Mace she was carrying didn't look like it'd be fun to be introduced to on a personal level.

The third, and Markus's final choice, was a slender girl, probably in her mid 20's by the look of her, with black hair, brown eyes, and carrying a Guan-Dao, a Chinese Great Sword. Far be it for Markus to ever deny his love of wuxia movies, and the distinctly asian features on the girl didn't hurt his decision, any… but the main reason was that while she didn't immediately profess undying love (That'd have just made things incredibly awkward) she did at least profess to being willing to 'work together for the time being.'

Paperwork was signed, a name (Xiao Fenhong) was given (By the Slicer in question, of course. She HAD a name, thank you very much!) and the Prize Corner was left behind the now ready-to-travel…. he hesitated to even think of himself as a Tamer.

"This is gonna get a lot worse before it gets better, I should think." He sighed, slumping aas he walked back to his hotel, intent on checking out a few days early.

The next day was spent, in the first hour, getting out of the hotel, telling the pleasant staff that no, it was nothing they'd done (or neglected to do) it was simply him getting itchy feet and wanting to travel again, and that they could keep the other days pay for the room as a tip for the front desk and housekeeping staff.

This left him with the rest of the day to wander about. He'd given Salohiel the main part of his backpack, keeping the extension on him as a kind of mini-pack, and recalled her to her pokeball before he began rollerblading East on Route 7. The Ferals along the route, the listed ones anyway, were all minor concerns at best. A few butterfly-girls, some mouse-girls… All of which seemed infinitely more interested in whatever it was they were doing than in him.

That sat just fine with Markus. The route wasn't perfect for rollerblades, but it was still tolerable. He could see the remnants of an old highway along with the newer paved roads. The trip towards Sapphron City would take him, give or take, a few days. And given that he fully intended on leaving the road before long and going towards… He wasn't going to even think~ VerMuffEatin' City, _Damn it_, he figured it'd take him at least a week to get all the way there, if he kept going at his current speed. Off-road would slow him down immensely.

Call it a week and a half. Plenty of time to get ready for random battling, especially with ferals as the main opposition. Feral Bunnygirls, Kitsune, Vixxens… it was only now, that he was stuck IN the world that he realized how much of a fetish 'fox-girls' were for people. He was setting down for a break, since rollerblading for extended periods can really take it out of you, especially when you have to avoid potholes, cracks and gaps in the road. The hills were his LEAST favorite things on the planet, when he had to get up the damned things…

"Hey!" He heard a voice. Male. Probably young, based on the pitch and exuberance in the voice. "You!"

Finally, Markus opened his eyes. He'd set himself down on the side of the road, leaning back against a tree near a bend in the road, which explained why he didn't see the younger man coming. He'd have gone further off into the wooded areas if he'd known someone would be coming.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking the younger man up and down. He was wearing rugged clothing, at least. Looked like it had been through it, with the mud stains and small tears littering the fabric. Several bruises and scratches were evident beneath those tears, and on the exposed skin of his hands and neck.

"You know how far it is to Celaboner?" the other man asked. "I've been walking for what feels like forever!" the Tamer exclaimed in a rather melodramatic fashion.

"Yeah. Bout half a day by rollerblades." Markus said. "Follow the road. That'll take you to the Eastern entry to the city. Residential neighborhood, first, but that'll pass quickly so long as you follow Route 7 and it'll take you straight to the gaming district."

Markus watched as the other Tamer nodded and made notes in his Pokedex. When he finally saw Markus eyeballing the injuries, he chuckled nervously. "Sonic Emitters up the road are out of order. Got attacked by a Vixxen. Or three…"

Markus nodded, rapidly growing awkward with his inability to think of anything to speak of.

"Wanna battle while we're out here?" The younger tamer asked. "My name's Broyce."

"Is it normal to challenge and then give your name?" Markus asked, genuinely curious. It'd mean that the idea of battling was more important that actually knowing with whom you were tangling… Not a pleasant thought for the somewhat out of place man.

"Nah. I just get excited. You're the first human face I've seen in the last few days that didn't immediately try to challenge me to a battle, steal my Pokegirls, or rob me of everything down to the clothes on my back." Broyce explained.

"That good, huh? Think maybe the robberies might be involved with the Sonic Emitters being down?" He asked. He could think of a dozen reasons why he, if he were more criminal in mindset, would want to destroy the things. It'd make for a convenient excuse for people randomly going missing on a certain route. Rob 'em, kill 'em, bury the body in a shallow grave or just leave it for the Ferals… Fuck that's dark. He shook his head to clear those thoughts out.

"Probably." Broyce shrugged. "I'm not exactly in a position to investigate that kind of thing. I'd let the Sapphron City PD know about it? But there's been no cell reception out this far either. I'll send 'em a message when I get to Celaboner."

'_If the kid even survives that long.'_ Markus thought. If it were him? He'd keep trying to get rid of the 'one that got away' before his sweet hiding spot and setup was compromised. But then, maybe the thieves/murderers of this world were more sedentary? Ah well.

"Sure. I'll have a battle with ya, kid." He said, taking out a cigarette and lighting it as he stood, stretching out his upper body a bit. His legs were just smegging fine, thanks. "I just got a Slicer at the Prize Corner, and I was hoping to test her out against Ferals."

"Oh? Well… Don't blame me when this goes badly, then." Broyce shrugged before taking out one of six (_'He's got a full harem, but I've got half! AUGH!'_) pokeballs and tossing one into a centre-area between the two of them. Out came a girl with goldenrod colored skin and two small antennae… It didn't take much for Markus to recognize the species as an A-Bra. The Pokegirl version of the Abra. Psychic Type. Fuck.

And she was asleep. Broyce looked at the girl. Then to Markus. Then back to the girl…

"Come on, Jess. Wakie, wakie?" He tried, shaking the girl's shoulder. A mumbled response was all he got as the girl rolled over. "Jess, come on!" Broyce nearly shouted, more than slightly embarrassed.

"Don't worry her, Broyce. By the way? My name's Markus. Forgot to do that. A-Bras need 18 hours of sleep for their psychic abilities. She probably knows more about what's going on right now than either of us, but the fact that she's sleeping keeps her from doing anything about it." Markus said. "Let's move on to your next choice? The mark of a good Tamer for an A-Bra is knowing when to let her sleep, and when she'll be up for a battle." Ok. So he was mixing bullshit from pokemon into this. Sue him. The A-Bra was a direct rip from the original Gen-1 Pokemon, and one of his favorite Pokemon of all time. Ralts still won that fight, though.

Broyce sighed and nodded, moving 'Jess' to the side. Markus took the opportunity to call out Xiao Fenhong, who took the opportunity to show off a bit, spinning her Guan Dao about with a flourish as she reformed out of the red light of the capture matrix.

Broyce watched as Xiao Fenhong formed and nodded appreciatively. "Lucky bastard." He said. "She looks like a good one."

Markus nodded, and watched as Broyce tossed out another ball, letting the pokegirl form. "Diana!" He called out as Markus saw something that made him wince slightly… The girl was dark black in skin color, pointed elfin ears, and that was about the extent of Markus's knowledge. She looked like a Dark Elf… So he scanned her with his Pokedex.

**DROW ZEE****, the Elf Variant Pokégirl**

**Type**: Near Human

**Element**: Psychic/Magic

**Frequency**: Uncommon to Rare

**Diet**: Near Human Diet (Omnivore)

**Role**: originally strike squads, but excellent at surveillance, strategic strikes

**Libido**: varies (usually Low to Average)

**Strong Vs**: Psychic, Poison, Fighting

**Weak Vs**: Bug, Dark, Ghost

**Attacks**: Water gun, Ember, Spark, Hypnotic Gaze, Shadow Teleport, Backstab, Shadow Possession, Low to Moderate Magical Spells

A Drow-Zee. The girl was a Psychic/Magic type, but thankfully not a Dark Elf in full. "Thank fuck for small mercies…" Markus said to himself.

"Thought she was a Dark Elf, right?" Broyce asked, grinning slightly. "So did I. But Diana's awesome."

Markus nodded. Drow-Zee were one of those breeds he'd had loved to have, if only because he'd always had a thing for Dark Elves in DD… Sue him. Crazy-deadly-spider-chicks? He had his moments of suicidal stupidity, he wasn't afraid to admit this.

The dark-skinned elf noticed him appreciating the view. It wasn't hard. Markus wasn't quite as subtle as he'd usually be in doing so, the shock of *being* in the world he'd written for was still getting to him. Her winking at him just threw him off a little more.

"No salvage, OK?" Markus asked, looking back to Broyce. "One on one, maximum 3?" he offered.

Broyce nodded. He didn't want to risk any of his current Pokegirls, either, and he could see Markus only had three pokeballs on his belt. Not wanting to do a salvage battle was probably a prudent decision for the older Tamer.

"Cool." Markus sighed in relief. "Xiao?" he looked at the Guan-dao wielding Slicer, "You up to show your stuff?"

Xiao looked at her clothing, a distinctly Chinese dress if Markus had any eye for that kind of thing.

With a laugh, Markus shook his head. "Not like that. If anyone's seeing those, I'd like to first."

With little more fanfare, the battle began. Markus and Broyce got a safe distance away, and the two kicked things off with a bang.

Xiao, the Fighting type, rushed in with her Guan Dao, sweeping at the Drow-Zee's midsection. While Xiao's speed was impressive, Diana's agility was just a touch more effective as she bent backwards almost entirely, bringing up a foot into Xiao's face while her large and heavy weapon was still moving from the missed slash. The impact was minimal, and not impressive given Xiao's physical toughness, but it was enough to get a little bit of space between the two of them as she continued the motion and flipped herself a few feet away.

When she landed, her hands lit up with a purple light, forming a small blade of psychic energy. The dark-skinned pokegirl grinned and rushed back in, swiping at her foe with quick strikes to vital locations. It was only Xiao's ability with her Guan Dao, and the lesson of not over-extending herself from that kick to the face, that kept her from getting a psychic blade to the gut!

Xiao kept parrying the strikes, going for the arm or hand rather than the blade as she didn't know whether or not the blade would go through it or not. She'd never actually fought someone using a Psi-Blade before, so she didn't want to take any chances. Still, the blade came too close for comfort more than once in the next few exchanges of the fight. Xiao kept moving, trying to find an opening, but every time she thought she'd seen one? The girl seemingly moved to close it.

Then the thought came to her. The girl was reading her intentions. She'd never thought a Drow-Zee might be able to read her mind, but this little exchange was putting that assumption to a painful execution. It was risky, but she couldn't continue as she was. Diana's movements were wasting far less energy than Xiao's own, and the elemental advantage would likely cause quite a bit of problems for her.

Finally giving up on the tactical route, Xiao began attacking, using the length of her weapon against her opponent and keeping her at a distance as much as was possible.

Markus knew enough about Drow-Zee to know that in a shadowy environment, this would be much more difficult, but given the sun shining bright in the sky, the lack of overhead trees on the road, and the weather working in their favor? Markus also knew that this was, at least, possible to win. Part of him hoped she'd fail. Not out of malice, but because one learns more from failure than from success. Already he could pick parts of Xiao's style that could use refinement, and plans were forming in his mind of how to do so.

Xiao's new strategy seemed to be working. She'd talked to some of the other Slicers while she'd been up for the Prize Corner's exchange block. One of them, one whom she thought had an unhealthy obsession with one of Edo's provinces formerly known as Japan, once told her 'No Mind. Don't think about your enemy, don't think about your tamer, don't think about the audience. Just fight. No Mind.' She'd landed a few strikes on the other Pokegirl, leading to a few bleeding gashes on the girl's form.

It was only when Diana stopped to mutter a spell, which Xiao could see was healing her wounds with a soft white light, that she gave up the 'finesse' portion of her style completely.

"You have GOT to be fucking with me!" she shouted, swinging the Guan Dao, blunt-side first, right at the stationary girl's torso… The cracking of bones could be heard as the superior strength of the Fighting Type finally overwhelmed the innate resistance to such attacks Psychic types had and the Drow Zee went flying. Small scratches littered Xiao's form from when the Psi-Blade had extended at just the wrong time, but otherwise Xiao was fine.

Diana, however? She was down for the count.

The next to come out was a Bunnygirl Broyce called 'Muffy.' Markus had to try very hard not to facepalm at that. The fight was… lackluster at best. One good bonk and the girl went down. Not even fully from the bonk as the rabbit-eared girl tripped over her own feet and fell _into_ the attack.

The third and final round of the battle was against a girl Broyse seemed reluctant to call out. He addressed her as 'Sally.' When he called her out, a being of shadows, nearly unrecognizable as humanoid, all jagged edges and claws, it seemed.

Markus couldn't help but wonder… "How in the hell do you even Tame that?" The term 'mannish' popped into his mind, though from the side he could see it did, indeed, have shadowy silhouettes of breasts… Not the best determining factor, to be sure, but who knows? Maybe Broyce was into that kind of thing?

Looking at his fellow tamer, Markus could only assume that no, no he wasn't. He could think of worse things, perhaps, if he had time. Maybe she was just good at battling? A quick scan was in order… no way she was a Shadowgirl…

**YOUMA****, the Default Demon Pokégirl**

**Type**: Not Very Near Human to Inhumanoid

**Element**: Magic/Varies (Infernal)

**Frequency**: Rare

**Diet**: special: energy consumption, various

**Role**: Soldier of the Legion of Terror

**Libido**: Average

**Strong Vs**: Normal, Varies

**Weak Vs**: Celestial, Varies

**Attacks**: Absorb, Dream Eater, Energy Drain, Shadow Scythe (Lv35), (Everything else varies)

Markus sighed. "Well… Fuck."

"We can do that after this." Xiao said, readying her Guandao.

Broyce sighed and nodded. "Yeah… just caught her a few days ago. Tamed her… don't ask… But she's an absolute demon in a fight. Nearly killed one of my 'Girls taking her down enough to catch." he explained.

Markus nodded. "Xiao? Please be as quick as you can? I'd hate to have to call out Salohiel AND have to explain how I got such a pretty new addition to the group hurt so soon after she joined?" he nearly begged the Slicer. He really didn't want to risk alienating Salohiel after he'd gotten to *see* an Archangel… And fuck one. Just saying.

Xiao nodded and rushed in, swinging her weapon as fast as she could at the shadowy form of the girl.

'Sally' seemed to take offense to that, as while she was slightly less durable, based on the 'Dex standard information? She didn't seem any less quick to react to things coming at her. Broyce was silent as the girl fought, probably due to lack of information on the girl's abilities… But Markus was calling out instructions.

"Duck!" he shouted, in time for the Chinese-themed Slicer to avoid getting an oblique swipe from a shadowy claw coming from behind, seemingly detached from the main body of the girl. "Try Swordwave!" he commanded.

The attack, despite being named 'swordwave' was more of a shockwave technique, like a 'void strike' from some anime. It seemed to work well enough. Better than well, if Markus were being honest given that Sally seemed to be very hurt by it. She took out that frustration with a lunging claw attack that wound up leaving three long gashes down Xiao's arm and ending with nearly taking it off at the shoulder with a cruel twist. Blood spurted from the wound before slowing to a distressingly fast ooze.

Xiao was nowhere near out of the fight, though, as she came back around, using the length of her weapon to gather momentum as she began spinning it one-handed, her good hand near the pommel to maximize the speed of the blade as it cut through the air. It might have been a trick of Markus's eyes, but he swore he saw a hint of light spark off the blade itself before it buried itself into the other girl's shoulder.

Broyse, being more concerned with not losing the girl than with winning the fight it seemed, recalled her and held up his hands. "I forfeit." he said.

Markus was already moving, grabbing his medicines from his pack and moving to Xiao's side to utilize the hypospray function of the canister. Before his eyes, the wounds oozing blood stemmed and began to close. Another left her with a couple of scratches before she stopped him from using another. "Failure teaches, pain teaches better." she said.

After the battle, Broyce took a break, with some medicines provided by Markus for his girls so that if he was caught out on the road he wouldn't be utterly screwed, and sat next to Markus under the tree.

"So." Broyce began. Markus looked over at him, curiously. "Where're you going?" he asked.

"VerMuffEatin' City." Markus said, keeping the response simple before his urge to talk took over. He'd recalled Xiao, and now it was just him and the other Tamer. "Spent time in Celaboner, gambled, had a good time, got myself two new 'girls from the Prize Corner, including Xiao…"

"I did notice you've only got the three." Broyce noted.

"Yeah…" Markus trailed off, a little embarrassed by his 'new' personal history. "Let's just say that I've been at this 'Tamer' gig for a while, now. Got to the point where I should probably retire, but too much got left undone, too much unseen, and too many Pokegirls lost to my own idiocy as a younger man."

Broyce laughed at that. "Come on, man. You're what? Twenty five?" he asked.

"Thirty one." Markus drawled. "Thirty one and for the last four years it was just me and Salohiel, training like mad. Lost my starter on Sadie Poken's Day, lost a Kunoichi to a Salvage match, lost a Shieldmaiden because I lost the Kunoichi… I guess I just kind of gave up after that. Then Salohiel came to me the next Sadie Poken's Day and we had a long conversation about where I was going in life. The answer? Nowhere. And fast. Drifting, aimlessly trying to get some powerful girl to turn my fortunes around…" he sighed, sad at the thought that this was who he'd be in this world. "Meanwhile? My sister's off in Crimson as a graduate from Vale working as a Mechanical mage with contracts from JahannaCorp, my mom's still in the Battle Circuit, and my dad's a Researcher."

Broyce was silent for a moment before, with all the grace of one dude talking to another he said, "That sucks, man. Well. You've got a good Slicer, now, and this 'Salohiel' you seem so fond of. And a third, so you're off to a good second chance, right?"

Markus chuckled, brightening up. "Yeah. Second… Third… maybe eleventh… the fact that i've survived as long as I have should probably count for something, right?" he laughed.

"Hell yeah, dude. I haven't met a lot of active tamers past twenty-seven. We either retire early, or die early." Broyce agreed. "And if you've been training a single Pokegirl for four damned years? I'm glad you didn't bring her out in our battle."

"She'd probably have been overkill. Salohiel's an Archangel. I used a good chunk of cash to get her that Shield Stone, too." he laughed.

"No shit? Yeah. She'd have torn Sally to shreds!" Broyce laughed. "I'll trade ya?" he offered jokingly.

"All aboard the Nope-train to Fuckthatshitville." Markus responded with a joking tone of his own, leaning back against the tree.

"Kinda figured." Broyce acknowledged with a renewed laugh.

"Knowing my luck? I'll run into a Youma myself at some point. I'd love to have an Infernal… But Celestials are more my speed I think." Markus said, relaxing into his spot on the tree.

"Yeah, I can get behind that. But I really want a Demoness… or a Succubus." Broyce said, a hazy look in his eye as he imagined the sex involved in that.

Markus sighed. "Let me tell you something I know from intimate experience. Don't keep a girl just because she *might* be powerful later, especially if she causes problems amongst your Harem. It never works out well." It made for shitty stories, unless the girl was a 'redemption' story. And there were only so many of those to go around.

Broyce nodded. "Still, I'm gonna try. If I'm dyin'? I'm tryin'. As a friend of mine once said." he said, relaxing into his own spot.

The two of them rested there for an hour in companionable silence. Markus took out a pair of earphones and turned on one of the audiobooks on his cell-phone/Pokedex. For all that things revolved around sex in this world? People still enjoyed good literature, and he had a few hundred years to catch up on in details, so his selection was a history book. He only put one earbud in, since he wanted to be able to hear things with the other at least…

After the hour passed, Broyce looked to be asleep next to the tree, so Markus began setting up his camp. He called out Salohiel and took his bag from her while the Archangel sat next to the tired Tamer, letting the aura of healing she'd gained as an Angel help the young man recover from the undoubted shitstorm his last few days had been.

The life of a Tamer, it seemed, was not one long in days.

By the time night had fallen, Markus had his whole 3-woman harem out and eating, with Salohiel sitting *right* next to Xiao, to help her arm heal from whatever was left of the injury. Broyce woke up with a start, and noted the fire and three Pokegirls sitting around it and eating what looked like instant stew. Smelled like instant stew, at the very least.

Broyce called out Jess again to find her awake, now, though still tired given the way she immediately plopped herself down on the ground and leaned back.

"Oh, come on Jess!" Broyce nearly shouted at the sleepy psychic pokegirl.

Said pokegirl just yawned and began to snooze. Broyce physically dragged the girl over to the fire, where the light was well enough to see by.

"Finally awake, eh?" Markus asked as Broyce sat down, plopping the A-Bra next to him.

Jess lazily opened an eye and telekinetically floated some soup into a bowl for herself. Broyce nodded and got himself a bowl of the stew. When he took a bite, the flavor, much deeper than standard instant stew, bit back. The flavors were much richer, the broth a bit thicker than he'd normally encountered with this particular meal pack…

Meal packs, at least the ones Tamers usually could buy for cheap from regular Markusets for 150slc a pack, were bland but nutritious. Some seasoned theirs, sure, but adding a slight kick to it in spices meant negating how many Pokegirls could eat it as well.

"Gotta love vegetable stew, right?" Markus offered, taking another spoonful with a big chunk of potato in it. "A bit of habanero pepper sauce gives it a nice flavor when you throw in some brown sugar." Sure, Markus had to supplement it for Xiao with some protein pills, but peas, bean sprouts, and button mushrooms made it relatively high in protein to begin with. And a bit of flour thickened up the originally thin stew broth… Really they should have called the base recipe 'vegetable soup' more than 'stew.'

"This is really good, dude." Broyce said, digging in. Even Jess seemed to be enjoying it, but with her not saying anything anyway it was difficult to tell.

"Thanks." Markus said, taking a drink from his canteen. "I pride myself on my ability to make bland things taste like someone actually put some care into their preparation… Jess seems rather advanced for an A-Bra." He said, looking at the psychic. To his knowledge, A-Bras didn't normally *have* telekinesis.

"Yeah, she's getting pretty close to becoming a Ka-D-bra." Broyce said, rather proud of himself. "I've been working with her for months, now, since I got my license. It's only good for small things and…" he trailed off as Jess looked at him.

After a moment or five of silence, he spoke again, "I know, I know. It's your hard work and effort that're paying off, Jess, but can't I be just a little bit proud? If it weren't for my happy ass, you'd sleep all day and watch TV when you're awake, and still be a basic A-Bra."

More silence. Markus could only assume she was speaking to her Tamer telepathically.

"Yes, yes, fine. I'll say it." Broyce sighed. "She's been working with ME, not the other way around, because I'm a useless lump. There. Happy?" he asked, looking at the psychic girl. Jess nodded and went back to her bowl of stew.

The rest of the night passed quietly, with Broyce setting up his tent and taking first watch. Just because there were sonic repellents didn't mean that Ferals couldn't overcome their dislike of the things and ransack the camp.

Markus went into his tent, recalling Salohiel, who wanted to be called out if something interesting happened and to give Markus a night to get used to the two new additions to their travelling band…

Saying Pythia was 'tight' was like saying the ocean is slightly wet. Saying Xiao liked sausage AND tacos was redundant, but for some reason Markus's brain seemed to be stuck on that fact. By 11 o'clock he was balls deep in Pythia while Xiao had taken it upon herself to 'help.' Pythia was the center of a sandwich, and by the look on her face was enjoying every moment of it. Xiao, meanwhile, was behind the girl, nibbling on her neck while she reached around and drew widening circles on her breasts as the Witch bounced. When the 'drawing' had become too difficult, bounding 'canvas' and all, she'd begun just paying the mounds attention, lightly touching when she could, but slightly tweaking her rather rudimentary technique to play with Pythia's hardened nipples every so often.

Markus was on bottom in this equation, and he really didn't mind this. The fact that this was a lifetime of fantasizing becoming reality was still sinking in. Every few seconds, literally. The moans and shrieks from Pythia were certainly helping. The fact that he hadn't 'blasted off like team Rocket' (A phrase he only thought in the relative privacy of his own mind… There WAS an A-Bra around…) amazed him. Desensitized, maybe? He'd had a week of Salohiel's newly increased libido to deal with, and he'd tamed Pythia once before…

Still. Things were getting painfully necessary in the immediate future. The thoughts of Jason Voorhees cutting through the tent and murdering them all… kinda helped keep a lid on things? But with the way Pythia kept tightening down on him every few minutes, while a massive ego-boost, and the way her hips felt when he had his hands on them, were enough to kill any thought of mass-murdering psychopaths.

As Robin Williams once said? It was then that Markus realized that God gave him a brain and a penis, but only enough blood to run one at a time. When Xiao quit nipping at Pythia's neck and sat herself down right over his face? He not only got the message, but he crossed the point of no return. No more playing around for him… His body was on auto-pilot as he went diving. What he could hear through Xiao's thighs was muffled, and muffled again, meaning the two were probably kissing, which was the final image he needed to slam Pythia down onto him and hold her there while his balls tightened and worked overtime, intent on that wonderful biological imperative to put a bun in something's oven.

He continued to lick the pussy above him, mind you. Kinda hard not to when it's literally right there in your face. That is until Xiao moved again. Pythia had stilled and was moaning as she rolled off of him. Markus's dick nearly popped out of her when she moved enough, but didn't sit in the open air for too long as Xiao bent over and held it upright once again. Any flagging involved was ceased as, despite being more than slightly exhausted, the blood began pumping again and getting 'mini-me' back into the action… Because Xiao was using her mouth. He could feel her tongue along his shaft, licking up remnants of both himself and Pythia.

The first time Markus had gotten a blowjob? Nothing special to be said. Teeth were involved, and it wasn't pleasant. Xiao, meanwhile, seemed to know what she was doing, and had a mouth to go along with that knowledge. After a few licks to get most of the obvious evidence, she engulfed him in her mouth with gusto.

Before long, he was back at full mast, and she was withdrawing, not only taking him out of her mouth, but reluctantly taking herself away from his. He'd been trying to get through the ABC's with his tongue and had gotten stuck on 'G' for the last few minutes.

When Markus looked at the girl, his face looking like a glazed doughnut at this point, he saw she was spreading Pythia's legs again. Not for him, but so she could crawl in between them and lower her mouth to the Witch's pussy. Facing Markus, however, was the lovely sight of Xiao's own derriere, toned and firm and wiggling at him.

As Xiao began diving into a cream pie, Markus wondered for a moment. Some of his favorite porn was not vaginal in nature. Could he…? Maybe give it a go, see if she's into it? He put his hands on the firm cheeks in front of him and pulled them apart slightly, showing off both the pussy he'd just been licking at and another prize just a bit higher. Trying to make things seem accidental, he was still relatively new at this, he ran a finger along her slit and up to her ass, trying to make it seem like he'd just slipped.

Whether it worked like he thought or not? Xiao didn't seem to care. Goraning and pushing her hips back slightly, Markus's finger went in slightly. Xiao nearly shot up, if not for Pythia's hands, which had begin running fingers through Xiao's hair, holding her in place. Her whole body tensed up before relaxing around the intrusion and she began wiggling again, pushing the finger deeper.

That answered that question. Markus pulled his finger out and grabbed a tube of lube, something he'd bought with the express purpose of using on Pythia since for some reason her body never seemed to get the memo that relaxing made that kind of thing easier to get started, and began working the cool gel-like substance both onto himself and into Xiao's ass.

Surreality aside, Markus was fairly certain that if this WAS a fever dream brought about by a complete psychotic breakdown, he never wanted to wake up. When he'd used a good amount, and his finger was no longer difficult to remove from Xiao's 'other hole,' he moved closer behind her and put the head of his dick against her. He didn't really have a choice after that, as Xiao nearly slammed herself back onto him.

Whatever he'd been expecting? This blew the whole fantasy out of the water. Fantasy could not compare to reality. And the reality was he was balls deep in the ass of a woman who could and would kick his ass if she felt the need to do so. Markus, in some small corner of his mind not overtaken by the need to move his hips, checked off another item from his bucket list.

He moved slowly, at first, trying to get used to it. Most of the tightness was at the entrance, after that it was warm, and still tight but not quite as much as the ring of muscle currently squeezing the base of his dick. It took a lot of self control for him to not begin jackhammering away. He knew the kinds of health issues that could cause, even with lube involved. Still, he moved. Xiao seemed to be controlling things anyway, even with her mouth occupied and Pythia's continued moans and shrieks when her tongue found just the right spot. She controlled the pace. When he was going too slow for her tastes? She pumped her own hips back and forth, when he started meeting her half way with a bit too much force, she tightened down on him.

When she decided, somehow, that Pythia had had enough, or that she'd gotten everything she could out of the poor girl, she withdrew from the grip of the Witch's fingers and pulled her down beneath her so she could kiss her.

Markus was, thankfully for him, nearing the end of round 2. It'd taken him a bit since he was still recovering from round 1 with Pythia, but it was coming nonetheless. With a titanic effort, Markus took hold of Xiao's hips and buried himself inside her, hilting himself in her ass as he began to shoot her ass full of cum… or at least it felt like it. Round 2 was always less voluminous, but it felt like it was 'big enough' to the sole human in the tent.

When everything had calmed down, Xiao was laying on top of Markus with Pythia next to them, and none of them felt the need for anything heavier than a sheet over the group of them. Markus, pondering the situation he found himself in through the post coital blissful relaxation, couldn't help but wonder if perhaps he'd get tired of this kind of thing. A depressing thought.

The minor scuffle outside involved Broyce and Jess sending a Feral Catgirl off running. She'd probably come for the Titmice in the area. It was a rather anticlimactic encounter, as Broyce relayed it when Markus got up to take his turn on watch at about 2 AM.

Markus called out Salohiel for his watch, since he didn't really feel that bringing Xiao or Pythia out would be a good idea at the moment. The two of them, both older than any in their little camp by a wide margin of at least five years each, sat quietly in the light of the fire. Markus put logs on the fire to keep it going, and seemed lost in his own thoughts, while Salohiel pondered their situation and the plan. More importantly, how to make her Tamer's goals a reality.

His goal of having at least a full Harem? Well on its way to completion. Or, well… Halfway there, and this new Markus seemed just a tad bit more determined to make something of himself than he'd been little more than a few weeks ago. Before that day when he'd awakened claiming to not remember any of his current life, saying stuff about pre-Sukebe society and such? A world without Sukebe? He'd been listless, living from payday to payday. 'Picky' was the best way she could put it, but at the same time like many men led by his dick, rather than the brain in his head. He'd wanted to visit Edo, Slot, and and a lot of other Leagues, but never put much effort into getting the badges for his passport to be worth a thing. He'd wanted to compete in tournaments for the cash prizes, but aside from training her? He never put much effort into capturing other pokegirls, even ones with a lot of potential.

This new Markus, however? While he might have a disturbing aversion to anything that didn't fall under 'very near human' categories of body types, he didn't seem too picky on the details, so long as the personality wasn't a complete waste. He'd told her, before, about his original Harem. A Shieldmaiden obsessed with his Kunoichi, an Ingenue who basically refused to be anything more than a travelling companion, using him to keep tame only out of some sense of obligation to herself to do so… And others with even less likable personalities. The sad thing was he had actually been fond of that kunoichi, and lost her due to their own confidence in her skills in that damned salvage match.

Bad luck after bad luck, it seemed. So the change was probably a good thing, by Salohiel's estimate. He seemed more driven, more optimistic about the prospects, and given that he specified 'no salvage' in the battle where he was testing out Xiao? He'd learned his lesson on not being overconfident.

Xiao was a nice addition. She knew her stuff, knew how to handle her weapon, and was easily fairly strong for her breed. The fact that Markus seemed to have a hardon for her features was a happy coincidence, but she'd have to break him of that quickly, if this was a new personality… or if Markus was just reinventing himself a bit more literally than she'd taken it for when she read that goal.

Reinventing his image in Tamer circles would take a bit more work than just filling out his Harem. He'd made a name for himself as a washout, sadly. His lack of participation the last 4 years had probably made most think he'd retired in disgrace somewhere and was living quietly away from the shame. So that'd have to be taken care of right quick. A few good battles, with her at the front, maybe? He'd made a good start with the battle with Broyce, but one battle does not a reputation make.

Salohiel formed a bow and arrow out of light and shot it into the darkness of the forest nearby, sending leaves scattering as the Pokegirl who'd been watching them scampered off.

Markus would probably have to use Xiao or Pythia against any trainers at the VerMuffEatin' City Gym… Salohiel knew her limits, and electrical attack were well beyond her ability to deal with comfortably. They made her wings lock up, made her hair stand on end, and of the two? That last one was a no-go.

Salohiel would deny to her dying breath that she protectively stroked her own hair at the thought of the poor follicles being so abused.

When dawn broke, Markus and Salohiel began making breakfast. Bacon strips, two for each person in the camp, and eggs with some sausage links cooked up as an afterthought. Gotta love meal packs… granted, Markus had to use two for this feast, but it worked out. The eggs would stay fresh in the mini-pack, as did the meats. He even found a tomato, which he cut up, toasted some english muffins, sprinkled with cheese, and put the tomatoes on with a pinch of seasoning salt and some minced garlic. He then put those back near the fire to toast a bit more.

Salohiel's Cooking T2 experience hadn't taught her that recipe, so she took notes. It looked like a good snack, and for breakfast? It was probably a good addition.

When the others woke up, it was to the smells of food. Broyce made his way out first, zipping himself up as he and Muffy the Bunnygirl made their way towards the fire. "Hey, dude." he said as he sat down.

"Good morning." Markus said, taking the muffins away from the fire and putting them on a cool pan to sit. "Feel free to take some. I've got dishes, if you don't mind camping plates and such." he said, beginning to dig through his camping cookware.

Broyce happily took his share, as did Muffy, who seemed happy to remain quiet for now, though she only took the tomato snack. She was a vegetarian, after all.

When Xiao came limping out followed by Pythia, Pythia sat down to eat, while Xiao 'chose' to remain standing… Salohiel could guess as to the why of it. She wasn't one for anal play, but it's not like it was taboo… Most of those taboos had died out long ago. The duo took their food, with Xiao happily eating the high-protein food and all of them enjoying the snacks to varying degrees. Xiao wasn't overly fond of it, but it was tasty. Pythia seemed to enjoy the snack, and Salohiel thought it was well worth learning how to make.

Parting ways with Broyce, Markus and his Harem, two of whom were withdrawn (Xiao being particularly pleased with not having to walk…) made their way East on the route while Broyce went East, towards Celaboner.


	3. What have I done?

Disclaimer: You know the deal. I own literally nothing.

/run Chapt.

There are days when Markus had to look back on the last few weeks and marvel. The landscapes were what he'd always wanted. Crumbling ruins of 'modern' civilization, the remnants of an old world that couldn't survive the fires of war, let alone the social upheaval which followed… There had been a point in his life he'd genuinely wanted to start World War 3, just to see what would happen, and yes… So he could watch the world burn.

Other days, like the current day, he had to wonder just what in the hell was wrong with people. And what was wrong with HIM that he found himself in these situations. He was laying flat on the ground, a pair of binoculars over his eyes and observing what looked like a dinky little shed out in the middle of god's nowhere. It *looked* like a dinky little shack, but Markus had his doubts due mainly to the number of people he'd observed going in.

At least twenty people were supposedly within a shack that, by all rights, looked like it might seat five comfortably.

'Now' Markus thought to himself. ' 'Why are you watching this building out in the middle of goddamned nowhere?' I hear you ask in my fevered imagination. The answer, my friends, is blowing in the wind…. Not really.' Even mentally, he couldn't resist turning his thoughts to a song. 'The answer is simply that these people are likely pokegirl thieves, possibly murderers, but I'm not going to jump to that conclusion because that'd be *dumb.*' he sighed as he adjusted himself slightly beneath the bush.

This bush was getting uncomfortable. There was a stick around there somewhere that had likely broken off a billion and three years ago, petrified, and waited there just so it could get between his legs and make this whole exercise as uncomfortable as possible. He could be having Pythia scry on the joint, but he'd already tried that, and they'd either gotten a magic type of their own to counter it, or they had some other defensive measures in place. This didn't speak to a poorly-funded operation.

Those kinds of countermeasures usually meant that there was a powerful Magic type inside, able to block things as they came up, or they had gotten an Enchantress to make a ward or something to keep prying eyes from seeing inside with anything but mundane means. Neither of which was cheap. Combined with the fact that there was probably an underground section, given the number of people he'd Markused down as having been inside at its peak, and you've got either a very well prepared group, or a well funded group.

Well funded COULD make someone well-prepared, but being well-prepared was an option of its own, since if you knew what you were doing, you could get just about anything done. Especially with pokegirls involved. And Magic was just pure hax powers, so no telling what all might be involved. For all Markus knew? The moment he moved to try and sneak or break in? They'd be alerted and ready for his happy ass with a small army of pokegirls.

And he'd seen at least one of them owned a Bombshell, which meant bad things for him in an enclosed space, since she could survive her own detonations. Markus was fairly certain they'd turn his insides into 'outsides.'

It was safe to say that, given the proximity to the out-of-order sonic emitters Broyce had mentioned, that these guys didn't really have the best of intentions. Part of Markus missed the Kunoichi he'd never had the chance to remember. With no cell reception, Markus was fairly certain that if they had the ability to contact people, it was with a secured network. He couldn't even call in for backup… Sure, they'd probably still be there… it'd taken him a few days to get to the broken Sonic Emitters, and a few more days to find this place when he left the road, but it was the principle. There's no telling if they were already moving base somewhere after Broyce managed to get away.

Then again? They'd been unable to rob or subdue Broyce, so who knows? Maybe he stood a shot? Maybe all they actually had were numbers?

While the sun was still high in the sky, Markus withdrew to a safe distance, making sure to break that stupid fucking twig into several small pieces before throwing them into the forest away from himself. Once he felt he was out of sight, and made sure of such by finding a boulder to go 'behind' in relation to the shack, he called out Salohiel.

The Archangel appeared in the now common to his eyes red beam of light and stretched. She brought all four of her wings out from hiding and let them extend a few times before retracting fully. She'd been out last night for her 'Taming night' and was getting the kinks out of her muscles after being 'confined' to the Pokeball for the morning.

"I don't think you realize just how annoying it is, to be in one of those things." She sighed as she worked her shoulders to loosen the muscles there. "So. Are we attacking them, at last?" She asked, a glint in her bright blue eyes.

"Yes, but." Markus nodded, using one of his favorite phrases. "First? We're going to capture one of them. A party left not too long ago, heading back toward the road. Do you think you can take them by surprise? Or should I send Xiao with you for a full assault?" he asked.

"I can do it, Master." Salohiel grinned. A chance to show off a bit after four years of training? Yeah, she was gonna take it!

"Okay. That way." Markus pointed. "There's a path leading to the road, hidden from the ground, but it should be visible from elevation."

That was apparently all Salohiel needed to hear, as she took off with a mighty 'whoosh' sound, all four wings flapping to give her the lift for ascent. High in the air, as she loved being, Salohiel looked down to the ground to see if her master's directions were accurate. The man could get someone lost on an 8 mile stretch of straight road if he tried giving complicated directions. Luck, it seemed, was on her side today as she spotted the group of five Tamers, four males, one female. All dressed in typical 'punk' fashions, with exaggerated accoutrements such as spiked bracelets, chokers, the hints of tattoos beneath their shirts or going all the way up their arms… Anything 'rebellious' was in full evidence. One even had the symbol for 'Anarchy' printed on his shirt.

Salohiel had to wonder why people did that. By buying the shit, the young man had supported capitalism and the establishment he supposedly wished to tear down. Not to mention that Anarchy always left a power-vacuum which was, historically, always filled by an authoritarian government. See also: The Leagues. 'Anarchists' almost always simply wanted to tear down 'the system' to replace it with a new Hierarchy having *them* on top. Still, while Anarchy-boy had seemingly singled himself out in Salohiel's mind, she wasn't going to capture him. No, she planned to confront them, and see how things went. If they reacted poorly, despite her bearing a collar Markusing her as being owned by a Tamer, then she'd kill the lot of them save for whichever one she felt like at the end.

She had very little doubt she could outdo any pokegirls they might have on them, and the humans themselves no matter how well trained were not as good as any pokegirl. No amount of Blood Gifts could accomplish that, since it was diluted due to the baseline human genetics acting as a ground for the more robust power in a pokegirl. This was why humans needed pokegirls, after all.

Ego-trip aside, Salohiel watched the party of probable-thieves for a while from on high. She followed them as they made for the road. It would be an hour and a half hike from their hideout to the road, going at a normal speed. If she let the go that far, that is. Instead? She watched them for a few minutes before descending, alighting on the ground in front of them with an Energy Blade formed in her hand. It took the form of a longsword, simple and plain save that it was made of golden light.

"Holy fuck balls!" One of the Tamers shouted. Up close, Salohiel could see that one of them was wearing headphones and had been bobbing their head along to the music before her entrance. "Guys? Why is there an Angel in front of us?" The male who'd spoken up asked his comrades.

The female Tamer took out her 'Dex and with a quick scan informed the others, 'She's an Archangel, guys. Says she's owned by a guy named Markus. Probably got a chip on her somewhere." Her voice had a distinct tone of disappointment.

"Your Tamer know you're out here?" One of the males asked.

Salohiel looked at the group. So far? They weren't acting in the stereotypical fashion Team-Wannabes acted, so she was vaguely hopeful these people weren't the thieves her Tamer thought they might be.

"Yes, yes he does." She said. "He sent me out ahead to investigate if rumors of a band of marauding rogue Tamers operating in this area were true, and if so, to capture one for interrogation."

"Your Tamer a cop or something?" The girl asked, looking distinctly unimpressed.

"It is the duty of all Tamers to stop criminal activity in the wilds, effectively policing themselves." Salohiel said, not really saying one way or the other.

The Tamers looked uncomfortable. Archangels were some of the preeminent Celestial Pokegirls, with good reason. They evolved from an Angel, who was originally a Blessed Pokegirl of another breed, and kept any enhancements that their original breed had. It was a Force Multiplier, to be sure.

Of course, any plans the female or headphones guy might have had about lying their way out of this were ruined… The guy with the Anarchy shirt spoke up, shattering any chance they might have had.

"Well, if your Tamer's not around? All that chip means is I'll have to be extra sure to 'search' every inch of you." The lecherous grin on the young man's face gave no doubt as to what he meant by 'search.' The fact that he and two other Male Tamers sent out Pokegirls brought a small smile to Salohiel's lips.

"I'm going to assume, then, that you are members of a criminal group, with designs to steal me away from my Tamer?" She asked, wanting things perfectly clear.

"Give the girl a prize!" The 'leader' of the trio of morons laughed. "She figured it out! Now, Ari, knock this bitch out!" He shouted to the spider-girl he'd called out. Given the Markusings, she'd probably guess Arachnae. The other two now-visible Pokegirls nodded at the Arachnae and all three of them bolted in to get close.

"You know? With how quickly those other two followed his orders… Are you two even Tamers?" Salohiel asked, glancing at the two cronies to the head idiot. The girl and headphones-guy stood back, with headphones calling out a young woman with a heavy shield which she placed between them.

With that, however, she had no more time for witty banter and instead fended off the first two comers with slashes across their chests using her Energy Blade. If she had to guess? A Goth and an Ingenue. The Arachnae tried to use the cover of her comrades to land a bite, fangs in her mouth practically dripping with poison, only to get a boot to the chest which sent the spider-taur flying backwards and into a tree.

This was followed by Salohiel flapping her wings, though not to take off. The feathers hardened and flew at her attackers in a wide arc, leaving three people standing under their own power, mainly by dint of them being behind a steel kite shield, which itself was pierced with feathers. It was likely relatively thick and enhanced by the girl's power, given that the feathers didn't look to be sticking in deep enough to go through it.

Two sets of hands raised from behind the shield as three men lay grasping at cut throats and attempting to stem the spurting flow of blood onto the cold hard and uncaring ground. The Arachnae was just recovering when she got 'balled by Salohiel, picking up the Pokeball from her bleeding would-be attacker and recalling the girl before she could cause any more problems.

Behind the Shieldmaiden, as that's what Salohiel assumed the shield-bearing Pokegirl to be, the two tamers looked pale and scared out of their minds that they might be next. The Shieldmaiden, however, simply kept her shield between her Tamer, herself, and Salohiel.

"We surrender?" Headphones finally spoke up, removing said headphones from his ears and hanging them over his shoulders around his neck.

The female Tamer nodded emphatically. "Yeah!" She agreed. "We surrender! Just don't kill us, yeah?"

Salohiel nodded. "Good puppies. Keep it up and I'll be inclined to believe you were forced to be here."

Headphones sighed. "No, not really. Kind of, but not at all." He said. "We were part of the group from the start, but it was originally just, like, a club. Ya know? Bunch of us didn't wanna live in a city, bound by all those damned rules, but then Keres came in, took over, and next thing we knew, we had like, four times our original number, but Keres was telling us to go out and break shit, take shit, that kind of thing, man." He nearly whined. It had been fun while it lasted, yo.

"And why did you not stand up to this 'Keres?'" Salohiel asked.

"Because, yo!" The girl shouted. "He's got, like, a full Harem of super-girls. A Dark Queen, a Neo-Iczel, a fuckin' Mazouku… He's even got one the 'Dex doesn't even recognize!"

Salohiel stopped at hearing that. That lineup was not something to take lightly. Sure, she could take out these relative weaklings. Taking on a lineup like that? Full of Infernals of ostensibly high power and long years of training? And a Neo Iczel was not something to sniff at… Not to mention the unidentified Pokegirl? That would only spell disaster.

If it was a new breed, just developed, or mutated from another breed, or if it was a breed that had avoided being found for over 300 years? Either way meant an unknown opponent with no idea of their capabilities. That was never a good thing when planning a battle.

Salohiel nodded. "Since you two seem to be caught up in this mess, rather than active participants, I will remember that you did not attack me, rather shielded yourselves behind a barrier and gave me information." She said, looking at the two surviving Tamers and the Shieldmaiden. "I'll be taking the spider-girl with me. The rest are yours to do with as you please, though I recommend a full Taming Cycle for them, and a quick retreat for you two and whomever else was originally just looking for a safe place to live away from the city." Hey, she was an Archangel. Not a cop.

"You wouldn't happen to have a layout for that hideout, would you?" Salohiel asked. "Or a way to bypass any traps? A general guess as to who and what is inside?" A note of steel in her voice let the two of them know that this was not actually a request.

The two looked at each other for a moment, having a brief but silent conversation before they scrambled to gather the remaining Pokeballs on their fallen 'companions' and then looked at Salohiel.

"The only safe way in is through the front door, and that's guarded by Jake. The password for the week is 'Nutty-berries.' Jake's an alright guy, but a bit slow, and easy to order around. I think that's why Keres keeps him around. He's got a Trollop, but that's it." Headphones explained.

"Yeah, after that you've only got to get through everyone else. Katie still has that Dark Elf, doesn't she?" The female asked.

"No, she 'tithed' her to Keres last week." Headphones spat out the word 'tithed' with disgust.

"Oh, right… Well, she's still got her Kunoichi, right? And the Dildorina." The female tamer nodded, trying to think of everything.

"Everyone else has either a few good Pokegirls, or one good one and some they keep for bedmates. We've only been doing this kind of thing for a few months, ya know? Not all that long to get a good stock of stolen Pokegirls. Near the back is a stolen Healing Unit. Keres has been using it to give stolen girls level 5's." Headphones went on.

Salohiel got the information her Tamer needed… Maybe not what he wanted to hear, but certainly need-to-know information for the assault. Looked like it'd be guerilla tactics for a while, whittle their numbers down. Given the information, the group sent out a party every few hours, one to patrol the area for ferals to capture and for intruders, another to go to the road to keep watch for wandering Tamers to challenge, rob, and to 'dispose of' in such a way as the Ferals hide the crime.

It wasn't the smartest way to run things, to be sure, but it was OK for a beginner not looking to stick around for too long. And plenty of patsies to pin everything on when they leg it outta there.

Salohiel let the two go after that. They both took off into the woods, running as though she might change her mind about letting them go. Most might be surprised to see a Celestial Type be so ruthless as to kill people, let alone kill those who'd surrendered, but Salohiel had seen more than enough in her time as an Angel and before to know that Evil only flourishes when Good is too weak to do what was needed, or too blinded by self-righteousness to stop at just what was necessary.

When she returned to her Tamer's location, deciding that waiting there for the potential search party was less important than informing her Tamer of the information she'd gathered, she found him sitting with Pythia over a bowl of water, which she was using to scry *around* the area, seeing if they could memorize the patrol routs the criminals took around their hideout.

"We might not be able to see inside, but you never know what you'll find out by looking around." Markus said, giving the blond witch a one-armed hug.

When Pythia let out an 'eep' the spell dissipated. Without giving her time to apologize, Salohiel walked up and set a hand on her shoulder. Another 'eep' was heard as the witch nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Salohiel!" Pythia tried to scold the older Pokegirl through hissed words. "You scared me half to death!"

"Only half? Don't worry. I'd see your soul safely to the Gates." Salohiel said, playing on the joke of Angels in general. "But I have news."

As she relayed the information Markus was making notes in his Pokedex, in an app designed for Pokegirl Tamers to design hunting strategies on. It had an index of common pokegirls and methods noted for success, a review system for which plans actually worked, and a planner section. That last one was what he was using at the moment, simply modifying the objective by putting 'Pokegirl being hunted' in place of the hideout and putting in the details they'd been able to figure out… It was a bit of a stretch, to be sure, but several breeds of Pokegirls DID gather Ferals to their service while Feral.

Still, the new information was disconcerting.

"An unidentified Pokegirl?" He asked. "Did you get any details?"

"Only that she is almost always with this 'Keres' character." Salohiel shrugged. "Beyond that I don't see how she could be any better than the rest. Infernals and a Neo Iczel? All bad news for us, no matter how you look at it."

Markus nodded before pulling Pythia into his lap where he sat on the ground. He wanted something soft to hug, damn it. So he leaned on her and rested his chin on her shoulder from behind. "Crap." He said. Already, he was wondering. Had he been so out of touch with the community that he hadn't gotten a memo about an updated entry? A new one, perhaps? Or was this a result of someone thinking about adding a new breed, and him just getting the shaft because of it?

"...Heh. Shafted." He said with a low laugh.

"Master?" Pythia straightened slightly, wondering what her Tamer was thinking. Was he thinking of 'giving her the shaft' right here!? In front of Salohiel? 'I mean… it's not like I didn't get eaten out by Xiao… Or fucked right in front of her… but Salohiel?' Her thoughts went a mile a minute as her face burned up. Her imagination was going out of control… Maybe she just wanted to see how Salohiel would react?

"Huh? Sorry. Said that out loud, I suppose." Markus said, relaxing slightly as he thought.

How was he going to crack this nut? How on earth was he going to not only get inside, but take down whoever was leading this shindig before the others all dogpiled on top of him and his half-strength harem? Why was there an unknown breed? The traps were also a concern…

Pythia's thoughts came to a screeching halt, the train derailing and crashing, killing thousands of little motes in her mind before inexplicably exploding. So much for seeing Salohiel's face...

Salohiel simply waited for her Tamer to get the hints she'd dropped for him in her report. Namely, to have her and Xiao go out and incapacitate the patrols as they came out and try to draw the enemy out of his hidey hole. 'Incapacitate' in this instance meaning 'knock out, kill if needed, remove from picture.'

"We could…" Markus began, seeing Salohiel's eyes brighten. "We could use Pythia to continue scouting, while you and Xiao go about, killing off the idiots on patrol. If they're too stupid to run? That's their damned problem, not ours."

Bit more 'lethal' than Salohiel thought he'd go, but it worked. She could show mercy if needed. He didn't say she couldn't. She wasn't utterly without feeling, after all. And if they surrender? Then what else was she supposed to do?

Pythia nodded and leaned back a bit into her Tamer's embrace, letting the headache of scrying dissipate a little as she closed her eyes. Keeping it up was a pain, especially because she couldn't control it entirely and had to constantly regulate the flow of magic so that it wouldn't literally blow up in her face… Maybe she could convince Markus to let her just brew some potions for a while? That always calmed her down.

"We'll start in an hour." Markus said. "Since we've started, we can't exactly stop until we've gotten what we need to do done." Once their people stopped coming back, the whole group would be on edge, which would only make it harder to predict their moves.

"They'll panic." Pythia said, visions flashing behind her eyes of what might happen, the most likely events. "At first, a few will come out, looking for their fellows, but when those don't come back, either, they'll begin panicking. The escape tunnel will be used by a few, but the rest won't make it out for some reason? Then they'll be sent out through the front door. I can't see why, but it looks like they're more afraid of what's behind them than of what could possibly be in front of them."

Markus nodded. "Then we let them run, take a few out to keep them running, but I'll leave that to Salohiel, since she cuts such an impressive figure, Miss Angel of War." He grinned at Salohiel over Pythia's shoulder.

Salohiel nodded and, trying not to disturb her 'sister' in the Harem, took Xiao's Pokeball from her Tamer's belt and released the Slicer. Of course, said Slicer couldn't let the opportunity to pose go, as she stretched out and spun her Guan Dao about with a flourish.

"We doing this thing?" She asked, looking at the assembled group. At Salohiel's nod, she grinned wide. "Wonderful. I've been getting antsy."

What followed was, for Markus, an object lesson on just what his previous self had been doing for the last four years with Salohiel as his sole POkegirl before their 'vacation' to Celaboner's Game district.

Salohiel was magnificent, an apparition of glory like unto how Maark always imagined Archangels. For a while? She indeed used a glorious sword of light, but after a few minutes of battling a stream of Pokegirls, seemingly attempting to use rudimentary group tactics to overwhelm the much more powerful Pokegirl, she switched to a spear, if 'spear' was an accurate term for a shaft of light and a 'bladed' triangular potion at the tip which extended the weapon nearly by a foot.

She nearly took. Tigress apart with a swipe of her wings, hardened and looking more like steel than feathers for a moment. She nearly literally disarmed an Amazon who was trying to punch her in the chest. The less said about what happened to the snake-girl? The better.

Meanwhile, Xiao was fighting an AmazonWu, who seemed to have taken exception to a slicer horning in on the 'exotic weapons' Markuset, as she used a pair of hook-swords. Their quality showed through, though, as Xiao's Guan Dao, a gift from her mother, cut through the waste of metal which were the Amazon's weapons. Not to say she got off scratch-free, to be clear. Even broken, the blades were blades, and Xiao's hands were bleeding rather heavily from the Amazon's strikes to both her weapon and the girl wielding it. This made her grip somewhat unsteady and slippery from the bleeding.

Markus watched all of this from over Pythia's shoulder, hugging the girl from behind while she sat on his lap with a scrying bowl on her own.

"Salohiel's doing well, master." Pythia noted. "You've trained her well."

Markus felt like he'd been punched. He hadn't done shit, personally… It was his native doppelganger. He *hated* taking the credit for someone else's work, and seeing Salohiel demolish her opponents with what looked like ease, he was less than pleased with himself. His own abilities would probably have fallen far short of that.

Still. It was cool as hell to watch. Like watching a Marvel movie in real life. Feathers sharpened to knife-like edges flew at opponents, a spear of light sewpt opposition aside, and winds followed in the wake of her flight.

Xiao was nothing short of impressive as well, as she and her opponent began really pulling out the stops, taking the fight to the trees around them, barely touching with. Foot or hand before, like some scene out of Hero, they went flying back at each other. It was only when both of them had taken and given their fair share of hits, Xiao's top hanging on by a thread over her left shoulder while the right hung down nearly exposing her chest, her body littered with cuts from the small broken blades the Amazon had landed after her weapons had broken, while the Amazon's own body was littered with cuts on her torso from where she'd been unable to dodge in time or from when Xiao had taken the pointed pommel of her Guan Dao and used it when the blade was still moving from the last swing, that the two stopped and caught a breath.

Without a word, both Amazon and Slicer launched themselves at each other. It was only when the Amazon fell to the ground, having been struck by the blunt side of the Guan Dao, that the fight was over. Xiao landed and then moved to check her opponent before removing the broken blades form her hands. Then? She moved back into the fray, this time targeting the Tamers while they tried in vain to throw more Pokegirls at Salohiel, hoping to tire her out.

Markus couldn't help but wonder if this was a callback to a scene from the War of Revenge… The POkegirls available to the mooks on patrol would probably have been enough to take on Xiao alone, pretty easily, or the random ferals of the area… but Salohiel was a final evolution, a final form if you wish. She had over a decade of time as a matured Pokegirl to train, and lord only knows how long as an Angel to get used to being one, then her evolution to an Archangel, which seemingly only enhanced what was already there? It must be terrifying to fight one in the wild.

It certainly answered the question of why people kept Infernal Pokegirls. Because Feral Celestial Pokegirls can be downright terrifying.

As Xiao attacked the humans giving orders and throwing Pokegirl after pokegirl at Salohiel, their attention was diverted, and Salohiel was allowed a moment to approach and demand their surrender, while they could still recall their Pokegirls and potentially get them healed.

To a one, they surrendered.

Markus was still more than slightly put out. He, personally, had had nothing to do with Salohiel's training, and she was awesome. Xiao was shaping up to be a good choice as well… Maybe he just had a thing for Fighting Types, but hey. Sexy Martial Arts girls. Nothing wrong with that. Still. It was a bit of a reality check. Archangels were no laughing goddamned matter. The fact that he had one was surreal. The fact that somehow he'd been training her alone for 4 years was beyond fact that she could take on 5 Tamer's Harems, newbies or low-class thugs or no, was badass but also utterly batshit insane.

'_Now,'_ Markus thought, _'I understand why most Tamers stick to ferals, at first. Tamer Battles are brutal if you're not around people of the same general experience as yourself.'_

It was a long-running theme in a lot of stories that a new Tamer would stick mainly to fighting Ferals for a few months. Hell, he'd written that kind of thing as well. But it was sinking in just how much damage a single Tamer could do, let alone a lone trained Pokegirl. Salohiel, while certainly not a Seraph, was still very powerful. Xiao, despite being a baseline evolution for her breed, was stilll impressive. Humans were, indeed, the squishy ones in this world.

Markus made his way over, after setting Pythia back on the ground, since her spell's need was passed, towards where Xiao and Salohiel had encountered the scouting party. When he got there, Xiao was standing guard while Salohiel had taken to the air, to see if any might have run, or if there was another patrol. A sane leader wouldn't leave the full patrol to a single group at a time, after all. If anything, they'd have a small group spread out with radio communication so they could report in as needed, and coordinate things. The fact that none of these mooks had a radio meant that they were probably meant to be expendable.

At least, that was Markus's thought on the whole thing.

Everything looked to be going well, including following Pythia's vision of the future. Right up to the explosion. The explosion that filled the air with smoke and flames for several dozen feet above ground and all around the 'base.'

Everyone, patrol party included, looked on in awe as the flames descended upon what remained of the shack. Each of them looked at each other, then to Markus, then to Salohiel who had flown overhead, then back to Markus… Confusion reigned.

"What… The fuck…" Markus asked into the ether, staring at the explosion.

"You didn't do that, then?" Asked one of the patrollers.

"Nope. Got nothing on me that could have. We were planning on having to fight our way inside and disable whatever you guys had what was blocking Pythia's attempts to scry." He explained, still dumbfounded by the sight.

"Well… Shit." The unofficially-elected speaker for the group cursed. "I don't suppose, given the circumstances and our word that this is probably the last you'll see or hear from us, you'd be willing to let us go, would you?" He asked.

Markus nearly nodded, but thought better of it. "You're all morons. I can trust your word about as far as I could throw a Giantess." He said.

"True, but we're morons with a good sense of self-preservation, even if it does need to be beaten into us every so often." The other Tamer countered.

Markus pondered. He couldn't bring himself to actually kill them… it was one thing to talk about it. It was another thing to kill in self-defense. It was an entirely different thing to kill people who'd already been defeated in cold blood.

It wasn't Salohiel who spoke up to be the 'angel' on his shoulder. Pythia was still too busy looking at the flames with what could only be called 'big boom syndrome…' It was Xiao.

"Master? I say we let them go. Dragging them to a city to turn them in would be impossible with only the four of us." Xiao said. Markus could only think to agree. 5 people, potentially with more Pokegirls, dragging them the whole distance to Sapphron City, or even to Celaboner, would be a massive pain in the ass, not to mention unlikely to work. One or two? Maybe. But 5? Not likely. And trying to single out one of these idiots without killing the rest? Also unlikely.

The fact that he thought of killing them even after all of this really disturbed Markus, but he took comfort in the fact that it disturbed him.

"Fine." He said. "Get out of here. If i see any of you again, I'll be contacting the police." He sighed. Not. Enough. Data.

After the group scattered, and Markus and his small harem found themselves alone and looking at the still-burning ruins of what used to be a thieves den hidey-hole. Pythia was enjoying the show, with a look of admiration on her face that was, to say the least, disturbing. This hadn't gone according to her vision, but Markus was fairly certain she was enjoying the sight anyways.

Salohiel didn't like letting the criminals go, but the logistics of dragging them to the city stopped her from making a fuss about it, while Xiao sat next to Markus as he pondered just what in the fuck he was going to do now.

He'd detoured from his original plan in order to take care of this problem, because he'd wanted an adventure. What'd gotten instead was a lot of moral ambiguity cloaked in righteous fervor. Salohiel sat down on Markus's other side, wrapping a wing around both him and Xiao, enfolding them in a sensation warm, feathered, safety.

With little else going on, Salohiel finally took out the Pokeball she'd taken from the feral-feeding idiot who'd lead the initial attack on her. The Arachnae, he'd called Airi or some such? She didn't feel the need to commit the name to memory.

"I took this." She said. "From one of the marauders. Figured he wasn't going to be using her anymore, and she might be useful in capturing Ferals." She explained.

"You took a dead man's Pokegirl?" Markus asked. "Wonderful. And how am I supposed to register her as mine? That ball belongs to someone else, and I didn't exactly win her in salvage, ya know?"

"Technically speaking, you did Master." Salohiel countered. "He made it quite clear he intended to steal me. I took that as a challenge to a salvage match on your behalf. All we do is report the attempted theft to the police in VerMuffEatin' City. They'll scan my mind, find out that I am telling the truth, and then assign her to you as Salvage. Better that than trying to find a buyer for her, which would cost the league money before it made them any. They might fine you for it, and charge you for the reassignment, but otherwise it's all perfectly legal. Criminals who operate as part of an organization give up many of their rights when discovered as such." Her lecture sent Markus about wondering just why in the hell the League was so blase about murder, but he supposed that killing criminals meant fewer prisoners to feed, cloth and house.

"The Indigo League is really not a proponent of 'rehabilitation' is it?" He asked.

"Rehabilitation is expensive, time-consuming, and only available to people not terminally stupid." Salohiel said, shrugging. "Teams or team-like organizations are classified as 'terminally stupid' by default."

It took Markus a few days before he was willing to really move from that area. He set up his camp in the woods, built a fire, and took a few days to himself, reading through some of the books on his 'Dex. It wasn't every day you really found evidence that you were, in point of fact, in a world wherein the government could and would ignore your death if they thought it would be too much of a hassle to care about your wellbeing, or if you'd proven willingness to break the law repeatedly.

He was too used to 'innocent until proven guilty' and 'Better to let a thousand guilty men go free than let a single innocent languish in prison.' In this world it was 'watch what you say' and 'Do unto others before they do unto you.' At least in the wilds, anyway.

He stared at the Pokeball with a 'salvaged' Pokegirl inside it. Salohiel had handed it over and he'd taken it, which in his mind meant that if this was a crime he'd be a party to it, but at the same time he couldn't muster any feelings of sympathy for the Tamer who'd been killed for it. He'd wanted to take what was Markus's, so Salohiel had taken what was his and his life for the offense.

Was this how Archangels were? Glorious apparitions of might and war, to be sure. It was that last bit that scared the shit out of him. War. He'd know OF it. He'd never been IN it. This didn't count, but it was certainly a glimpse of what could happen in what, to Markus's sensibilities, could only be called a more 'socially primitive' world. Might made Right.

Still, he took a few days to consider. During the day, he'd let one Pokegirl out at a time, just to spend time with them individually and work with them on some basic training, since he was out in the middle of god's nowhere anyway.

Xiao he had going through Katas she'd already learned, along with examining her weapon itself for ways she might be able to improve her use of it. He had her fighting the few Ferals making their way back into that portion of the forest now that the hideout was gone and the patrols had stopped… he'd even caught a Firemaiden drawn to the explosion! He honestly didn't think he'd keep the girl… he knew enough about Firemaidens to know they were trouble at the best of times for his personality. Still, sparring and fighting Ferals was a good way for a Combat-Pokegirl to gain experience and learn more about her abilities.

The night with Xiao out involved both of them finding a small secluded point along the river nearby, bathing in the cool water after the day's exertions, and him pounding her ass once again… Markus didn't think he'd ever get tired of that, if he were utterly honest with himself. The night ended with her on top of him, him still inside her from behind, and both of them going to sleep in a relaxed (and sane, thankfully) pile of loosened muscles.

Pythia's day out of her ball was spent working with her through basic magical theory, having her run him through what she knew, having her *teach* him as much as she could. Markus knew one main thing about academics. You can learn a lot by teaching, answering questions you'd have never thought important enough to ask. It was an interesting lesson, especially when she wanted to go into Potions and show him how to brew some of the basic kinds… She insisted SHE be the one to prepare the ingredients, thankfully, because Markus wasn't ready to get into deep theory on brewing just yet!

The night was even better, as she decided to make a game of sitting on his lap and trying to name the constellations while he tried to distract her. He one, to her chagrin, but who in the hell suspected otherwise? She was sensitive, damn it!

Salohiel's day out was the second to last day he spent there. Most of the day was spent in quiet contemplation, along with a bit of light exercise. Salohiel seemed perfectly happy to hear that Markus wanted to get back into the Martial Arts, and seemed oddly knowledgeable on the subject. She was more than happy to run Markus through some basic Katas she 'remembered' while explaining the theory in graphic detail of the philosophy behind the kata, the motions, and the styles themselves.

Markus wasn't going to complain. He'd rather have a wide base to work from with firm foundations than to build a tower as high as possible, but supported with toothpicks. That night saw Salohiel practically pounce on him the moment they were in his tent. Unlike the others, Salohiel preferred privacy, and while she started off fast, she immediately slowed down, let him take control, and kept things going long and slow for the night. Slow and loving, that would be the best way Markus could have described it.

The fourth day, however, he kept to himself. He bathed, laid about for a few hours reading, did some of the practices he'd worked on with both Pythia and then with Salohiel, and still found himself with hours of daylight left. He looked at the Pokeball containing the Arachnae again. For about an hour he contemplated things.

Part of him wanted to destroy the Pokeball, re-capture the girl, and then put her through a Level 5 Taming Cycle. Why? Because. He didn't want to be reminded he was indirectly responsible for someone's death every time he spoke to the girl. But he didn't want to rob her of her memories, either. Objectively, a level 5 would be for the best. He didn't want to risk the girl going apeshit on him and killling him… but he also didn't want to be *that guy.*

Ultimately, for the sake of survival, he'd probably have to be 'that guy' but for today, at least, he decided to give it more thought before he did anything too rash. The rest of the day was spent just reading on his Pokedex, relaxing, and smoking a few cigarettes. He needed that, just a day to his goddamned self. He was used to having hours upon hours in which he was, effectively, alone…

Well, as alone as you could get when you had a cat who seemed to believe it her sacred duty to chase off the demons that lived around you at every opportunity. Loudly.

Still, it was a much revitalized (And refreshed) Markus that laid down that night. It was odd, after a few weeks of having someone in the bed, to be alone in it. It felt good, for the usual loner that was Markus. The morning came, and with it the realization of what an idiot he'd been to not leave someone on watch. But not having a Nocturnal Pokegirl and not having been in the mood himself (Needing his sleep) Markus had let it completely slip from his mind.

When he settled down, and made sure that everything he needed was still inside his tend, and looking outside he saw that the only thing missing was the leftover stew he'd had in the pot… the pot itself was still there and cleaned out… he relaxed and set about cleaning up his camp site. No sense in leaving the place a pigsty. When he finished cleaning everything up, he called out Salohiel.

"Good morning Master." she said, stretching after she noted they were not in the middle of combat, or a challenge, or something equally silly.

"Good morning, Salohiel. I've gotta say? Yesterday was… relaxing. It's nice to be getting sex, and sex I actually enjoy, nowadays… but I need some 'me' time, ya know?" he asked, laughing.

"I know what you mean, Master." Salohiel nodded, a slight quirk of her lips that might have been a smirk showing itself for a moment.

Markus caught it, and thought for a moment before slapping his forehead lightly. "Ah. Right. When we get to VerMuffEatin' City…. GOD I hate that name… Redpriest, why do you do this to me?" he asked the ether before getting back on track. "When we get there, I'll give you, Xiao and Pythia a day off to do as you will."

"So. I take it you didn't claim the Arachnae?" she asked.

"No." Markus said, firmly. "And I won't until she's been put through a thorough cleaning, healing, and Taming cycle. I'm not sure what level, just yet, but I'm debating the value of a level 5…" he sighed.

"Do it, then." Salohiel shrugged. "If you think she'll be more valuable to you as a blank slate? Then do it. It'd give you the ability to mould her from the ground up. It's not something I'd recommend for a lot of Pokegirls, mind you, but it's still something to consider." she explained. "She's salvage. When we get to VerMuffEatin' City, they'll note that the Pokeball isn't registered to you, ask about it, and as long as you just say she's Salvage, they won't investigate. But we SHOULD inform the authorities so they can keep an eye on this area, and then they will investigate and find that she is, legally, salvaged. Her tamer died when he attacked a more powerful pokegirl than he could handle, or he challenged me by claiming he'd just remove my anti-capture chip, and I defended myself against an identified criminal."

Markus was getting lost. He knew that she'd explained it before, but god damn the laws were going to be a pain in the ass to re-learn. The Indigo League's legal section of the Primer was not something he could recall off the top of his head.

"Let's just head out." he said after a few moments of attempting to recover his train of thought from the jumbled mess of a crash it'd suffered.

The duo packed up the camping gear, and set off once again. The walk back to the road was much more comfortable with a somewhat worn path to follow, then Markus set himself on the road with his rollerblades and began skating down the road once again. Salohiel flapped her wings and took off into the air, flying low, but keeping up easily with her ground-bound Tamer.

The next few days were spent in the fashion of a normal hiker, it seemed. Markus would rollerblade for a while, with Salohiel keeping watch in the skies, letting him know of any interesting Ferals that she spotted. It was also an interesting chance she had to test out her flight, now. Maneuvering with 4 wings instead of 2 left her with a much greater control over her flight paths, even if it did take some getting used to. She could still fly with just 2 wings by dismissing the second set, but 'full plumage' as she'd come to think of it had its distinct advantages.

Markus, meanwhile, listened to her advice, and even expanded 'interesting' to include any Ferals that Xiao could get some good practice on. Salohiel, from what he could tell based on what he'd seen at the hideout for the thief ring, was more than capable of taking care of herself in a lot of situations with the more common breeds. Xiao needed the work. As did Pythia.

Pythia's first actual battle, since she DID need the experience while Tame rather than just when she was Feral, had involved a nice, easy opponent. A Feral Titmouse had wandered into the camp, and Pythia, being the least-trained of all of the girls in his Harem, was the one he wanted to 'test out.'

Granted, a Titmouse probably wasn't the best subject for a test, but he did find out that Pythia's Mystic Bolt was pink-colored. Pythia was usually the Pokegirl Markus had out for a night, partially to let her experiment with her magic, learn as she went, and expanding her notes and observations via letting her use a new document on his 'Dex, which he'd then observe and read later for his own edification. He'd always been a fan of the 'wizard' concept in fantasy games, and Magic always seemed like the best way to not be a cheerleader for a Harem, in his mind.

He wasn't letting her get by with just experimenting with Divination, either. Much as he enjoyed that school of magic and the potential applications thereof? He needed Pythia to be more than just a glorified fortune-teller. He had her working on her Mystic Bolts, Summoning spells, and even beginning explorations of Black Magic attack spells. Salohiel was a bit of help in that, since she remembered a few of the lessons she'd gotten on such things even if she refused to actually use those spells.

Xiao was, when she wasn't fighting Ferals during the day, allowed to relax a bit. When she was called out for a fight, afterwards she'd walk along with Markus, he'd take off his rollerblades for those walks, as they talked. Salohiel would often join them as they walked along the road.

When they left the road, to avoid Sapphron City by as wide a margin as possible while still making progress to VerMuffEatin' City, Xiao was out all the time along with Salohiel. Markus was nowhere near stupid enough to rely on his own reflexes and Salohiel's ability to warn him when they were away from the safety of the Sonic Repellers on the road.

Still, it was a good time. He made quite a bit of progress over the next week or so, since he was taking his sweet time in moving and going at a leisurely pace rather than balls-to-the-wall running through the wilds like a complete fool. The motto of this universe was ''where Men are the soft squishy ones' after all. So he took his time, let Xiao fight to her heart's content against the plethora of Ferals they ran into, him capturing several for sale or auction, while letting Pythia experiment with her magic while they were out and about.

VerMuffEatin' City was… Well, it was bright. A port city, Markus could smell the salt air of the sea, a smell he hadn't gotten since that one time he'd gone to the Pacific Ocean when he was a kid for a cousin's wedding. It was nice… if you likes military bases. Given that Markus remembered his dad being in the Air Force throughout most of his childhood, he was somewhat used to it.

His first stop was the entry gate for the city, since he needed to let the city officials know he was there, among other things…

"Name, Tamer ID, and purpose of visit, please?" A uniformed guard asked. Markus wasn't stupid enough to think it was a request, so he produced his Pokedex.

"Markus W. Here for tourism, mostly. Maybe catch a few Water types at the port, maybe see how badly I'll do against the Gym." He offered a laugh, but the guard remained stoic.

"Keep the good humor. You'll need it." He said, taking the Pokedex and scanning it into the gate's computer. When the light turned green and the gate opened, the guard handed Markus's 'Dex back. "You're clear for entry. Enjoy your stay." He said.

Markus beat feet rather hastily to get away from the humorless guard. He knew the guards probably had to be like that, under orders and all, but still. He didn't like it.

His first stop was the police department's office. V.C. Police were just as militant as the rest of the town's governmental infrastructure. When he approached the desk, a uniformed police officer sat and nearly glared at him from behind bullet-proof glass as a Growlie stood nearby on Markus's side of the glass, seemingly ready to pounce if he pulled any kind of 'funny business.'

"I'd like to report an attempted robbery, Salvage, and discovery of criminal organization in the woods separating Sapphron City from Celaboner." Markus said, keeping his words as short as possible while Salohiel stood silently behind and a step to his left. VerMuffEatin' City was about as Anti-Pokegirl as you could get and not be Viridick, if Markus remembered correctly, so Salohiel's public display of subservience was probably for the best. At least for now. The beach was another matter entirely once you got down the coast a bit.

The desk sergeant slid a piece small stack of papers through the slot at the bottom of the window and his voice came through a speaker. "Fill those out in the waiting area. You will then be interviewed and your story corroborated via psychic investigation." The officer said.

"Salohiel here was the potential victim of the theft, sir." Markus explained, trying to keep a respectful tone to his voice. "She was the one who was both nearly robbed, nearly stolen, and involved in the salvage battle. The opposing Tamer was less than obliging to the idea that she was owned already, and given current information on his organization, likely planned to wipe her mind after the theft. I'm not sad to say that the would-be thief got his just rewards for breaking the law, sir."

The sergeant raised an eyebrow at that. "Flattery gets you nowhere." He said. "But it will be taken under advisement."

An hour of filling out paperwork, and then half an hour of waiting found Markus sitting in an interview (interrogation) room with one female officer and what he could only assume was an Alaka-wham. Thankfully, Markus was an 'all-round picture' kind of guy, so a huge set of tits didn't really set him off.

The female officer set up a recorder and began to speak. "Interview for Case Number IC dash VC dash 2937021. Inter-city incident, reported to VerMuffEatin' City Police department, twenty-first precinct. Interviewing Officer Samantha Grace. Psychic Pokegirl interviewer Chance Cleareyes. Witnesses-slash-claimants, Markus W and Pokegirl Salohiel, Archangel species." She said for the record.

Samantha then sat down. "So. You wish to claim that you were nearly robbed, your Pokegirl nearly accosted, stolen, and that there was a small criminal organization inhabiting a small building between Celaboner City and Sapphron City on Route 7. Correct?" She asked. When both Markus and Salohiel gave verbal affirmatives, she continued. "Archangel Salohiel claims that she confronted a group of Tamers on a footpath from the building to the road, suspecting them to be 'marauders going to rob people' to quote your filed paperwork." She looked to the Alaka-Wham next to her.

"Her thoughts confirm this. The Tamer's thoughts confirm that he sent her to do so, acting under suspicion based on damaged Sonic Emitters on the road, and testimony provided by another travelling Tamer… Broyce?" She was diggin for the name, and found it rather easily.

Markus was scared, now. His mind was private, damn it! He had shit in there he never wanted shared, because it wasn't the best of things in the world, for fuck's sake! The Alaka-wham's voice came through in his mind, he'd never experienced anything like it, but always thought you'd be able to feel it when someone was rooting around in there…

'_First off. No, no you can't. Not without psychic abilities of your own, and secondly, do not worry. I am here only to find details on the incident in question. Anything else is between yourself and a much-needed psychiatrist.' _Markus could feel the slight notes of humor in Chance's mental voice. _'Thirdly, 'thought crime' is not yet on the books. It only applies when applying for a Tamer's License…. Please stop thinking of that song, by the way?'_

Markuss thoughts immediately turned to classical music, which he enjoyed when not listening to Power-Metal, and away from 'I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves' as he had been… Hey, she'd asked nicely and had explained her purpose in his mind. No point in being *that* impolite, right?

Chance seemed to relax almost imperceptibly. "The Tamer's thoughts confirm. Both viewpoints are in line. Though technical, Salvage Rules apply, as do loss of legal protections for those who live outside of the law. Archangel Salohiel's acts count under self-Defence clause number 5927, provision P pursuant to the ability of Pokegirls to keep themselves from being stolen by necessary force." Chance nodded, and Samantha gave a small smile.

"Good. Then there IS a Fine for not reporting this immediately, and the charge to transfer ownership of the salvaged Pokegirl outside of an officially registered Salvage battle. This is why we always tell people to register these things in both parties' Pokedexes as soon as possible, but given the death of the other participant, and his criminal status, the charge and the fine come out to…" she trailed off to do some mental math.

Chance spoke up almost immediately. "Two-thousand seven-hundred ninety-eight Credits, Mistress." She said.

Samantha nodded. "There you have it. The fine and the charge will be deducted from your accounts. The Fine, first, of seven-hundred ninety-eight Credits, and if you cannot pay the charge for the transfer of ownership, the pokeball will remain in impound until such a time as you are able to pay, or trade something of equal value." She explained. "Any questions?"

Markus shook his head. "No, Ma'am. You've been nothing but helpful and clear. Thank you." He felt robotic, saying that, but he did mean it.. She'd been more helpful than he'd expected… Sometimes Anti-Pokegirl sentiment could work in his favor, he supposed? Could this be because of how VerMuffEatin' basically viewed Pokegirls as property, and property that protected itself from theft in a lethal fashion was the norm in this society? Ah well…

'_It is."_ He hears Chance's voice in his mind again. _'Pokegirls are allowed to defend themselves, it is seen as our place to *want* to be with our rightful owner, and Pokegirl Thieves are assumed to know the risks they take enough to not be protected from their own mistakes.'_

Markus left the police department a bit lighter in both wallet and spirit. He wasn't in trouble, and the psychic type hadn't gone digging in his head! And he'd come out of the whole ordeal with a new Pokegirl…. Kind of a half-loss, on that one. It wasn't that he didn't want an Arachnae. They used to be one of his favorite breeds to ponder. He'd always loved Driders in DD, mainly due to their connection to the Drow, but Arachnae were always quite entertaining for him, in thought anyway. The problem was that the number of Ferals he'd caught had him well over the limit for a Tamer, even with a non-combat slot, but he really only wanted to add a few at a time, so he could have time to integrate with his current Harem, whom he was *still* getting to know.

He still had to train Pythia so she'd be able to get some experience against tougher opponents without necessarily having to rely on Xiao or Salohiel… he'd always hated having that one Pokemon in games that he was leveling up, and it'd almost always turn out to be the one that'd survive, which he'd sacrifice to revive his more powerful pokemon… But in this world? That'd just be cruel as hell… And he didn't want to even consider that option.

So when he got to the Pokecenter, he was still waffling. Most of the common breeds he'd caught? Those were no-brainers. He put them up for sale immediately. A few Bunnygirls, a bunch of Titmice, a couple of Kitsune, even a Flowergirl who'd wandered into his camp one night. They were still Feral, though, so his prices would be low, but he had a lot of them. The Firemaiden was confirmed to be a former Domesticate who'd gone Feral, so he put out some notices that she'd been found, captured, and that he was willing to return her.

Then he proceeded to send all of his permanent Pokegirls in for a cleaning, healing, and light Taming Cycle level 2… He still felt dirty about it, but when weighed against his survival? It seemed a fair price to pay. The Arachnae, though? It had been transferred to his ownership. She was sitting in a standard-issue Pokeball, likely unaware of anything that had been going on for the last week and then some…

The Arachnae he put down for a Cleaning, healing and Level 5 Taming Cycle along with the full suite of his T2's. THAT he felt disgusting about. He was wiping the girl's mind entirely. But then, she'd seen her Tamer killed, she'd been owned by a Thief… And who knows how much he'd already influenced the girl. Who knows if she hadn't been wiped before by the guy he'd claimed her from… Too many variables he didn't like, and too many points of failure to leave to chance.

It was with a heavy weight on his mind that he finally got himself a room and waited. The small rooms were just like he'd envisioned them, at least. Small, but comfortable for a temporary stay. He took a shower, got as clean as he could while luxuriating in the feeling of having *soap* for the first time in weeks… You don't use soap in streams, damn it! He got his clothing to a washer/dryer, put all but the bare essentials (A pair of boxers and pajama-pants) in for a thorough cleaning themselves, and then went to bed, trying to ignore the thoughts plaguing him of how he was wiping away someone's mind for his own benefit.


	4. Self Indulgence

Disclaimer: Same old song and dance. I own nothing. Pokegirls is based off of MetroAnime's stuff. This'll probably be the last time I do this other than to say 'I disclaim things.'

/Run Author's_

Well, here we are again. Once more in the basement of my house, pretending to be an author writing something of value or interest whilst shamelessly fulfilling my deepest sickest fantasies. Enjoy! For those who haven't cottoned on? I've pre-written at least 5 chapters in advance before posting any of this, so forgive me if I don't do responses in-chapter.

/end Author's_

/Run Chapter

The next smegging day. It only took a day before he got a response from the original tamer for the Firemaiden. That's discounting the number of false flags he'd gotten. People claiming she was theirs, people who just messaged him saying 'dud u suk' or 'go back to bed, grampa' and the like.

Honestly, the only reason he knew to whom she actually belonged was the fact that some of her features came up on a search of 'Lost Pokegirls' online. Usually, that page was dead, only containing Pet Owners and Tamers who'd been robbed. No one ever wanted to admit to having *lost* a member of their Harem. But apparently the guy in question had, in fact, lost her and was willing to admit it in order to get her back.

The email read as such.

'_Re: Angela:_

_To whom it may concern,_

_My name, if you care, is Max. Angela, the Firemaiden you posted as having caught feral in the area around Celaboner and Sapphron, is mine… Yeah, I know, laugh it up. 'Dumb dudebro lost a Firemaiden, hur dur' but please. Hear me out before you make any judgements. We got separated during an attack by ferals on our camp, she's my Starter, ya know? We were having some taming Time. Anyway, we got separated, and by the time I realized she wasn't with me, she'd gone too far for me to track her down. I asked the police to help, but they just laughed at me._

_Here is a copy of my personal statistics from her Pokeball, you'll see that they match the one you've caught. I triple-checked. I'm willing to pay to have her returned, or trade the feral Vampira I caught from the group that separated us… Fuck, I'll let you pound my own ass if that's your thing. Just please, I want Angela back, and if you do decide you'll take payment out of me? Don't *tell* anyone, yeah?_

_Hoping you're not an asshole,_

_Max Steffonsen'_

Markus nearly laughed when he'd read the message. It did have an attachment, and after connecting the pokeball with the Firemaiden in it to a computer, the stats did match. Down to the birthMarkus on her left shoulder.

His response read as such.

'_Re:Re: Angela:_

_Hey, Max._

_No worries, dude. Only payment I'll ask is for a new Pokeball. I haven't touched her. She was feral when I caught her, and Firemaidens are domesticate-only so far as I know, which is why I started checking about. If you caught a Vampira? And it was part of a group? I'd be happy to tell people you traded her for information on where that was, but I'll get her to you with or without that information. I know how attached people can be to their Starters, and how much it hurts to lose them for any reason. I'm in VerMuffEatin' City for the next few weeks, so stop by the Pokecenter and we'll get her back where she belongs. Most I'll do is put her through a cleaning cycle. She was… Well, she was nude when I caught her, and covered in soot and ash._

_Totally not that big an asshole,_

_Markus W._

Sure, they were a bit formal, but Markus figured Max was trying to be polite and not offend someone who had something he wanted. And he wanted 'Angela' back badly.

After a few more messages, including an exchange of phone numbers so they could coordinate better when Max got to VerMuffEatin' City, Markus was set to get that 'girl back to her original owner. He DID make sure to check with the Police to confirm, and there was a Missing Pokegirl report filed in Sapphron City, but the officers involved put it down to 'tamer negligence. No action needed.' If he'd just kept her and didn't mention it? He'd have been fine to keep her.

Markus didn't like that thought, personally, and made damned sure to get Anti-Capture collars for his current group… Including the new addition, whom he hadn't taken out of her ball since he got it back that morning. Salohiel already had one, but Pythia and Xiao didn't yet, so he rectified that oversight right quick.

As he'd promised, however, He handed over his credit-chips to Salohiel after calling out Xiao and Pythia, so the three of them could have a 'day off.' Granted, by city laws, he had to be with them, but that basically just meant he spent most of the day reading outside of stores, or at a coffee-shop while they got their nails done or got a massage… he didn't pay too much attention. Audible hadn't been idle in the last few hundred years, and he thankfully had an account, so he was busy looking up LitRPG novels, fantasy, and Sci-Fi books by the series.

By the end of his first full day in VerMuffEatin' City, Markus had had more than enough of the military-base layout of the city to last him a lifetime. It was… Impersonal. There was no 'neighborhood' kind of areas, just 'housing sectors.' Still, there were shopping areas, at least, where he saw more people relaxing with retail-therapy than he'd seen since leaving Celaboner. Maybe it was his initial impression of the world, with Celaboner being more liberal and more 'entertainment oriented' but going from that to VerMuffEatin' was a bit of a shock. Still, at the end of the day, his three currently active Pokegirls had gotten their nails done (A practice he would never, ever understand…) gone shopping for new clothes, Xiao had gotten new boots, and Salohiel had gotten them all back massages.

When he checked his email at the Pokecenter, he saw he had a response from 'Max.'

'_Re:Re:Re: Angela_

_Hey, thanks, dude. I'll be there in a few days. Three tops. If you wanna go hunting Vampira? Go for it. I'll sit in VerMuffEatin' for a while, I think. Train up Angela for a bit so we don't have to go through that nonsense again._'

Markus nodded at the message, mostly out of habit, and closed the mail application before going book shopping online. Basics of Magical Theory would run him a bit, thankfully Amazon, ironically, was still around, so he bought the digital version which had a bit of a discount… instead of 500slc, it only cost him 450slc. Based on what he knew, the Standard League Credit amounted to about 10 cents, which meant by his measurements it was a $5 discount. It WAS an academic book, so that was to be expected. He wasn't a student at Vale, so he probably wouldn't be getting that discount ever… Sadly. Still, it was 600 pages of information on the basics of magical theory.

He made sure to have Pythia take a look at the sample, just to be sure. She said it was worth it, and they'd made plans to study it together. When the three had finished their shopping trip, Markus had recalled them and walked into a book shop. It'd been so long since he remembered being able to walk into a real bookshop that the feeling was still a welcome bit of nostalgia. Barns and Noble only existed in, like, 3 places in Minnesota, after all, and Borders Books had all but vanished. Half-Priced Books was better, but still second-hand… The store he entered had a young woman sitting behind the counter reading 'A Brief history of Time' who barely looked up to nod as he entered the store.

He went through the sections quietly, looking at the titles he'd never remember. There was something about holding an actual physical copy of a book that was just so much more powerful to him than an e-book could ever be. He bought a couple of books, a wide net of interesting topics, like the book written by… he hated to say it, but it was basically written by this world's version of Neil DeGrasse Tyson. Looked like the popular physics icon in the author picture! But the name? Neil DeGrass Trysome.

There were days when Markus almost forgot he was in a world completely taken over by the need to have sex. They were rare, but they were some of the more relaxing days, owing to the lack of constant reminders that he wasn't, in fact, in a completely different world than the one he'd been living in not a 2 months ago. 2 months ago? He had a job as a security guard working for just over minimum wage. Now? He was in a sex-pot of a world, but making money pretty well, given the free housing and discounted food at the Pokecenters.

After the bookstore and his purchases of books on Physics including Pokegirls and the various theories surrounding everything, Markus made his way silently to a movie theater. One of his favorite ways to waste time before doing what he knew needed to be done sooner rather than later. Seeing a movie.

When he saw 'Princess Mononoke' in the showtimes? He'd thought he might have gotten to a Hayao Miyazaki festival showing or some such. Turns out? Completely wrong. They'd remade the masterwork of animated fantasy. They'd done a live-action remake, too. The special effects were fantastic, to be sure, but Markus was fairly certain the original didn't have Ashitaka boning San three ways to Sunday in a variety of creative positions. Nor did the original have San and Lady Eboshi settling things by seeing who could get the other off first. And he was damned sure a Legendary pokegirl wasn't involved.

"God… Damn it all…" Markus muttered to himself as he left the theater. He couldn't even say he'd hated it! He actually did enjoy most of the movie. It was actually tastefully done for the most part, and again, the special effects were fan-fucking-tastic. But they'd taken a piece of his childhood and… Well. Bent it over a table… At least they'd offered a reach-around by keeping to the original plot?

When he returned to the Pokecenter that evening, he was frustrated in more than one way. He was tired, he was more than slightly aroused, and he was fairly certain that there was pressure building up behind his forehead signalling an immanent headache. So? He downed a couple of Ibuprofen, took a shower, and sat down in his room with the TV on tuned to a channel showing an 'old' movie marathon. Old for this world, maybe. New to him.

With slumped shoulders and an air of resignation, Markus called out the Arachnae. He hadn't even considered a new name for the poor girl.

She solidified out of the red light, standing stock still, confused and probably seeing the world for the 'first' time and thusly coming to terms with the little bits of knowledge she still had. She could speak english, she knew she was a Pokegirl, she knew all the basic things, the kinds of things one learns over the first few years of life in a normal fashion, there was just absolutely nothing personal there. No likes, no dislikes, no favorite foods, no knowledge of what foods she'd even like to begin with. Basically? Induced Retrograde Amnesia.

When she formed, Markus watched. The girl was wearing pretty standard clothing, a skirt and a pink T-shirt. Beneath that her skin was a light brown. Thankfully it was _skin_ and not chiton, but with the way the girl looked, Markus wasn't too sure it'd really matter. She was kind of spindly, with black compound eyes and a few dots on her forehead seemingly forming an arc between her two normally placed eyes, which Markus could only assume were meant to look like the other eyes a spider is supposed to have. She was very pretty, in features at least. Nicely formed face, aside from the compound eyes, breasts in the high end of the C-cup range, and legs that Markus could look at for hours.

She began to move about the room, investigating things. The computer, which she turned on, the TV, the bed… Then Markus himself. While she didn't touch him, she did give him a visual inspection. Then she spoke

"My name is Ari?" she asked, utterly confused.

Steeling himself as best he could, Markus put on the face of someone 'in charge.' he didn't feel it, but… 'Fake it 'till you make it' was a good motto. "I'll be renaming you 'Grace.'" he said. "You're mine now, after your former Tamer tried to steal my Harem's Alpha. Ari seems like such a waste on a spider breed. Unoriginal." And it'd help him separate the girl from 'salvage' in his mind to think of her as _his._ "Do you understand what all of this means?" he asked. Part of him was concerned. He'd read a lot of different interpretations of a level 5 taming Cycle, but he'd never thought he'd witness the effects first hand… Or that he'd have been the one to order it. It still made him a little sick to think about.

Or maybe it was the food. Who knows.

The newly-named 'Grace' nodded. "Grace… Am I stolen?" she asked.

"No." Markus said, more firmly than necessary, but mostly for himself at this point. "As it's been explained to me in detail, you were won. Your former Tamer died because he had you attack my Harem's Alpha with stated intent on removing her anti-capture chip and likely performing a level 5 taming Cycle on her." he explained.

'Grace' nodded again. "I understand, sir." she said. The effects of the Taming Cycle were… Rather profound.

With the serious awkwardness out of the way, Markus sat down on the bed. "So. You know that you are a Pokegirl. You know what that means?" he asked, trying to avoid having to tell her she needed to be fucked regularly to keep her sanity.

"I am a Pokegirl…" she repeated. "I am an Arachnae, a spider-based Pokegirl. I serve my Tamer…" she trailed off, not quite sure where to go from there.

"And I am your Tamer. Now, I'm not going to ask you to clean up the place, since I like a little mess every now and again, at least until we leave the Pokecenter. I'm not going to ask you to cook for me, though I did put in the Cooking T2 when I got you healed and cleaned up because I want you to be able to cook for yourself if need be. But we DO need to establish at least an Alpha-bond…" it was his turn to trail off.

"Ah." she nodded and began taking off her shirt, followed by her bra, then her skirt. Markus noted that the girl was not, in fact, wearing panties. She seemed utterly ignorant of the idea that disrobing on a whim was odd to Markus, and stood in front of him, completely nude. As she moved, Markus saw a darker-brown marking on her upper back, looking vaguely like a violin, if he turned his head and squinted a bit. Brown Recluse base, then. That was only mostly terrifying.

Markus made a note to buy a dildo for the sole purpose of training her before ever conceiving to ask her for a blowjob. The last thing he ever wanted was brown recluse venom anywhere near his junk. He might almost feel like he would deserve it, but that didn't mean he wanted it to happen.

'Grace' now stood, shifting her weight from foot to foot awkwardly, staring at him. It was almost unnerving.

"Just… Come sit next to me, for now." Markus said, trying to cut through the sheer amount of 'Awkward' involved in this whole process… "Why can't there just be a montage for this?" he asked himself. "Or just have it 'off-screen?'"

"Master?" 'Grace asked, looking at him even more confused. She moved to obey, and sat down next to him on the bed before Markus pulled them both towards the wall behind the bed and leaned against it so he could still watch T.V.

"I just want to watch a movie at the moment…" he sighed. "And this is awkward as hell. I feel like complete and utter shit for putting your through a Level 5 out of fear for what you might have been like before." If there was one thing Markus took out of most situations? It was that the catharsis of brutal honesty usually helped him deal with situations in which he was uncomfortable. "I feel like an asshole, and now I need to fuck you seven ways to Sunday after basically ordering your mind wiped of everything that was 'Ari.' I've renamed you 'Grace, taking away the last bit of connection to your past, for my own comfort, and the worst fucking part of all of this is that in this world? That's considered just fucking dandy. It's my 'right' to do with you as I wish, now. Even the police agreed after I reported it, and all i got was a Fine for not telling the cops about things before dealing with it, and a charge to transfer ownership of you to me from a dead man."

'Grace' nodded. "I don't think I understand the problem, Master." she said. "But I understand I make you uncomfortable? Perhaps it might be best to recall me and give yourself time to come to terms?" she offered.

"No." Markus said. "Like I said, I want to watch a movie. You will need to be Tamed sooner rather than later, and hopefully just… Sitting and watching a movie will help me relax a bit. With the way movies in this world go? I should be awkwardly trying to hide a roll of quarters in an hour or so. Until then? Having a beautiful naked girl next to me should be a pleasant mix between 'awkward' and 'aroused' to confuse me. Absolute worst-case scenario is I call out Xiao and ask for her help on this."

"Who is Xiao?" 'Grace' asked.

"Xiao is my Slicer. She's… Well, let's just say she has no qualms about 'gender' and would be more than happy to give you a full introduction to the Harem. I don't know if there's a line with her, but I haven't found it, yet." he shrugged.

"Master?" 'Grace' looked slightly more confused, now.

"She likes girls. She likes guys. She likes to eat pussy with a dick up her ass. She likes to suck breasts while giving a handjob. She likes to get her own muff licked by a girl with a cock shoved down her throat. I haven't tried yet, but I'm fairly sure she'd like getting eaten out while I pound her ass like a war drum and another girl sits on her face." he said, his voice flat as he described Xiao's sexual appetites. When it came to Sex? Xiao was on a 'see-food diet.'

'Grace' nodded, the image of her 'Sister' in Markus's harem clarified. She was still getting used to her new name…

"Now. Indiana Jones is on. And let me tell you? They _really_ changed things up with this franchise. I'm fairly certain they got a Pinielf to help make a Harrison Ford body-double." he said. "After this is the Librarian series, thank holy christ. I loved those movies."

'Grace' just nodded, sat next to her new Tamer, and watched the the time when Indiana Jones and his father were discussing the fact that they'd both tamed the same girl, Grace found an arm over her shoulders. Only about 2 and ½ movies in, and he was ready to do more than sit next to her… Progress?

About the time that Indy was infiltrating a Nazi book-burning rally by way of seducing one of the Pokegirl guards, Markus's hand had found itself resting over Grace's left breast. It was light, to be sure, like he was afraid of possibly being bitten. When Indy was attacking the tanks of the advancing Nazi column through the desert, his apprehension had dissipated, seeing she wasn't going to stop him, and in fact seemed to be helping him if the hand she put on his, directing it to be a bit more forceful was anything to go by. He was playing with her nipple before the german commanding officer was dead, drawing small circles on her skin with his fingers around the hardened nub of flesh before going back around her breast and then to running his fingers over the protruding bundles of nerves.

When they were discovering the hidden path to the Holy Grail, Markus's apprehension was gone. They'd gone through two different sex-scenes already… If there was one thing those were good for? It was adding almost an hour to the runtime of most movies. Most theaters had an 'adult showing' and a 'family-friendly' showing of movies. Tamers were almost always automatically put down for the adult-showing, which is why Markus's experience with the Live-Action Princess Mononoke was so very different to what he'd expected… his pants were beyond uncomfortably tight, and not even trying to think of baseball, or what he'd order for food, was helping to diminish the fact that he was at full mast, flesh and cloth battling over which one was tougher. So far? Cloth was winning.

So when Grace got up in the middle of the main villain drinking from the fake Cup of Christ, pulled Markus's pants down and sat herself down on his dick, Markus was more than happy to let her. Netflix and Chill, indeed. She was soaked down there, even after such a short amount of actual foreplay. Small rivulets of her arousal were running down her thighs visibly in the reflections off her skin before his view was obscured by a light-brown back, long brown hair, and his dick being wrapped by a tight, hot, wet feeling.

Grace gave herself a few minutes to get used to the feeling. This was the 'first' time she remembered feeling it, after all, and it was nice, but the urge to move was overwhelming. As she pulled herself up, she felt Markus's hands on her hips assisting, then he pulled down on her, pushing himself back into her as deep as he could go.

Soon the moans coming from the television were joined by a secondary chorus, as Grace bounced up and down on Markus's lap, and Markus held on for the ride by the lovely firm and well-formed ass in front of him. Or her hips. Or, when she leaned back and ground her hips on him, reaching around to cup the bouncing breasts of the spider-girl on top of him. The mirror on the small closet door gave him a much better view over Grace's shoulder than the television. In the mirror he could see himself going in and out of the brown girl's puffy lower lips. He could see the streams of lubrication coming from her, making his passage all the easier. And with her leaning back, he could quite easily hear her moaning and almost growling when he stopped her movements every now and again to fully appreciate the view.

He lightly bit her neck as she leaned further back, her head resting on his shoulder while he played more with the dark-skinned nipples on her breasts. He was marking her as _his_, rather than just as a 'salvage.' He wanted to fuck any sense of remorse away and blow it and a load of cum into her pussy.

"Do you see that, Grace?" he asked, pointing at the mirror with one hand. "You straddling me and pumping your hips back and forth, trying to milk me?"

Grace nearly growled, but looked nonetheless. She'd enjoyed his light biting, damn it! And the pointing took attention away from her breast! She looked as saw her face in the mirror. Eyes glazed with lust, her pussy spread for her Tamer's intruding dick and her leaking juices practically streaming out. When he lightly pinched her nipples while she was distracted, her face contorted slightly, and the bundle of tension that had been building inside her released all at once. Her moan raised in pitch as her mouth opened, but couldn't form words. She felt, then saw, him tense up beneath her before his hands went to her hips, which had been shaking jerkily with muscle spasms, and hold her still, trying to hilt himself in her as she felt splashes of warmth inside.

It felt like he was dead set on breeding her, by the amount of cum he'd poured into her!

With a lazy motion, he grabbed for one of his Pokeballs, one with a sticker of a sword on it, and called out the girl inside. Xiao appeared out of the red light, reserving her flourish with her Guan Dao owing to them not being in the wild.

When Xiao saw the position her Tamer was in, underneath a spider-girl who was still spasming slightly on his dick, she grinned.

"Oh, Master… you know just how to say 'hello' to a girl, don't you?" she asked, removing her shirt and making for her belt, boots and pants.

"Indeed I do, you nymphomaniac Wire-fu Mistress." he said, going back to lightly running fingers along Graces' flesh. "I have a project for you. Grace here just finished both of us off, and probably needs to be cleaned up. I leave the 'how' up to you, but she's not moving from my lap until this movie's over."

Markus enjoyed games like this with people. Give them a situation, give them limitations, and most people wouldn't question it. It was a bit of a power-trip, sure, but he had so little control in his life, a little fun and games every now and again were well worth it.

Xiao smiled wide as she came up from pushing her pants and panties down around her ankles. She stepped out of them and sauntered over to the Spider girl before capturing a nipple in between her lips. One hand went to the other breast and began playing, while her right hand moved down her stomach towards where Grace was still joined with Markus.

Markus relaxed against the wall, letting Xiao get to work on Grace. He could see it happen, of course, but he was more interested in letting his heartbeat come down to a manageable level. When he slipped out of Grace, the fun apparently began for Xiao. The bed was a bit crowded, but that didn't seem to stop the Slicer as she simply used the positions of the two on the bed to her advantage.

By the time the movie was finished, and the next one had begun playing, Markus was happily sitting with a cigarette in his mouth watching Xiao go to town on Grace just as much as he was watching the opening sequence for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The remake, thank god…

Much as he'd loved Shia LeBouf as an actor… As a person Markus had grown to detest the man. His 'art project,' no matter the descriptive attached to it, had been amusing until the actor had seemingly gone off the deep end with his politics over the project. So when the remake of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull got rid of the aliens, kept the much younger Indiana Jones and gave him a human son to work with for the movie who didn't wind up swinging from vines through a rainforest and kept up his level of performance the whole way through? Markus was actually thrilled. The Crystal Skull, in this version, turned out to be a magical focus of Celestial origin, rather than goddamned aliens.

While Xiao had gotten quite a bit of practice on Pythia, the Witch was easy to please. Xiao almost never got through writing out the alphabet with her tongue before the Witch started spasming. Grace appeared to be enjoying herself, and taking her sweet time if the hands running through Xiao's hair were anything to go by…

The night was interesting, to say the least, and when both Xiao and Grace had finished, Markus recalled both of them, changed the sheets on the bed, and went to sleep, gratefully putting a pair of earbuds into his ears so he would sleep undisturbed by nightly noises. Normally, if he did that, he'd sleep through any kind of alarm… it was beyond annoying when he'd discovered that fact, because even if the music stopped while he was asleep, he'd just outright sleep through any alarms.

In this world? He fell asleep listening to Mozart, and happily slept until the sun was setting once again. He needed that sleep. And the shower that came after it. The shower was nice, cool (it was edging into the hotter weather, it seemed) and refreshing. With a clean body, a nice long sleep, and a lot less stress in his immediate past or future, Markus was able to finally relax a bit when he got back to his room at the Pokecenter.

It was nearly 11PM when he heard a knock on his door. Salohiel had been with him, out of her 'Ball, for the last three hours as she ran him through some basic breathing exercises. Both sets of eyes went right to the door and Salohiel stood from her seated position, ready for action but relaxed. When Markus went to look through the peephole, he saw a young man wearing weather-beaten clothes, short brown shaggy hair, and cat-like eyes standing outside in the distorted view of the peephole.

Feeling slightly paranoid… he'd written scenes like this before, damn it… he called through the door. "Doordash?" He asked. "I ordered that Pad Thai an hour ago!" The plan was to make Max identify himself without outright asking 'who is it.' Mainly because if they agreed to being from Doordash, it'd be obvious they were lying. He'd only ordered his food 10 minutes ago. It'd take at least another 30 to get there….

"No? This is Max. I asked the Nurse at the front desk for your room number, dude." The other man said through the door.

It was the work of minutes to get the other man his Pokegirl, exchange it for an empty Pokeball and a notation on his map app to find where the group of Vampira had been spotted.

"You DO know that Feral Vampira tend to gather around Feral Vampires, right?" Max asked while Markus was looking at the noted location. It looked to be somewhere between Sapphron City and Lavenderriere Town.

"I not only know this thing," Markus started, grinning at the other Tamer. "I'm counting on it. I've always thought Vampires were cool, so long as they don't sparkle in the goddamned sunlight." He couldn't help the dig at the Twilight novels, even if they'd blessedly never been written in this world. Or made into movies with acting so wooden and stiff the actors could have been replaced with scarecrows and voiceovers and it might have been made better.

The less said about 50 Shades of Grey, which only came about because of Twilight, the better.

"Just remember, dude." Max said, sighing. "Vampires are dangerous. If you get bitten? Get your ass to a Hospital as soon as possible unless you fancy becoming a Vampire yourself." The younger man looked decidedly uncomfortable at the thought of being turned into a Pokegirl.

"I know, I know. Still. Worth a look, see if there IS one there, or if it was just a random pack of Vampira. Either way? I still win. Vampira are cute, too." Markus grinned again, wider. This totally had lots of opportunities to fail horribly, but the best plans usually did, right? Or was it 'bad ideas make for great stories?'

Yeah. That one.

"Well, I'm gonna go bring Angela back to the land of the sane." Max said, wanting to get away from the old-timer with a slightly insane glint in his eye.

"Huh?" Markus looked up from the map. "Oh. Yeah. Thanks for the intel, thanks for the Pokeball, and enjoy the Firemaiden. She's a cute one. I'd suggest you get a collar for her, in case some shit like this happens again." He gestured to the tasteful collar around Salohiel's neck.

"Got it." Max said before hurrying out of the room. Max thought Markus was nice, but slightly unhinged. Or just outright insane. Either way, bad for his continued health to be around without an exchange to be made.

When he was gone, Markus's face relaxed to his neutral 'default' expression. Vague interest in the map, sure. He had plans. But it wasn't quite aas manic as he'd played it up to be.

"Did you want to scare him, master?" Salohiel asked, sitting down next to her Tamer on the bed and resing her hands in her lap.

"Kind of. It's a character to play. I want to keep people off-guard. I get that my previous personality was kind of mild and unambitious, so I figure if I act differently with different people, it will help confuse them so that I can rebuild my image from the resulting morass of mental images people have of me." He shrugged. Markus knew the theory behind manipulating people, and had done it on multiple occasions, sometimes without even meaning to do so, but he was actually rather proud of his ability to do so when he actually gave enough of a fuck to try.

"Still… it's a bit odd." Salohiel noted. "I'm also curious why you suddenly want a Vampire." A note of jealousy was in her voice, not that Markus really cottoned on to that. She didn't like Vampires. Didn't see why so many people did. Vampires fed on blood, and only blood, couldn't be Tamed during the daytime hours, and generally came off as self-important little shits. They seemed to try and come off as 'dignified' or 'elegant' but usually just came off as self-centered and pompous.

This coming from an Archangel!

Markus shrugged. "I like vampires. I loved the mythology around them before certain literature turned them into some teenaged fantasy of what romance might look like, if the guy involved was a creepy stalker with an almost vegan attitude towards normal members of his own species who eat what they can as opposed to a strict diet of 'safe' foods. Dracula, to me, was an inspired horror figure, when portrayed properly. And I love horror."

Salohiel sighed, not liking the answer but she'd heard much worse reasons for going after a dangerous Pokegirl. "Just so long as you realize I'm more likely to kill her than knock her out if she tries to bite any of us." She said. "I don't think any of us fancy dealing with the infection, or our Tamer turning into a blood-sucking Pokegirl."

Markus nodded. "I understand. If it comes down to it? I'd rather be *safe* than end up a Pokegirl. Big risk, big reward, but no sense in being stupid about it. _Measured_ risk is the important thing to remember."

Salohiel smiled in agreement, already planning how she might 'accidentally' hit something vital on the Vampire. If there even WAS a Vampire. Could have just been a pack of feral Vampira. Not impossible. It was just far more likely to wind up leading to a Vampire. She wouldn't go against orders, to be sure, but she wasn't looking forward to having a Vampire involved in the Harem. They were notoriously difficult to deal with, they were usually egotistical, and she didn't fancy having to defend her position as Alpha constantly. Feral Vampires were always worse than Tamed examples, but easier to deal with since most of their ability to think would be gone.

Markus saw Salohiel withdraw into her own thoughts and sat back to do the breathing exercises again. He'd head out the next night to see if there was anything to the lead. He'd have to stop by a Mart and buy himself some Pokeballs, some Potions for spares, some antidotes, wide-angle antibiotics… the usual things. Just to keep his supplies up.

Ultimately, the guaranteed prize to this expedition would be a Vampira. Not a bad breed. Dark/Flying type with a good selection of Enhancements and a necessary role for his group, since having a dedicated night Guard would definitely help him out with sleeping schedules out in the wilderness.

With a list drawn up, containing a list of supplies he'd need for his 'expedition' mainly consisting of recommended equipment he was missing as suggested by both Taming For Dummies and online forums for Tamers, Markus set about buying his stuff. He dropped most of his Harem off for a Cleaning and Healing Cycle, keeping Salohiel with him just to be sure, before he left the Pokecenter in the morning.

2 weeks worth of dehydrated food for 4 people? 4000slc. It mainly consisted of pasta and canned foods which stacked in his Mini-pack. A few packets of meat and vegetables to add in and a few MREs for emergencies. Portable hand-crank charger? 5000 slc. Cheap? Maybe, but it got the job done, and the next best one he saw for sale involved a lot of miscellaneous crap like solar panels. A bottle of vitamin supplements? 300slc each, one designed for flying types, one designed for Fighting types, and 2 standard 'Human or Very Near Human' bottles.

For the Night-time hunting he was looking to do? He bought a pair of Darkvision Goggles. They cost him 15000slc alone, but he'd made all of that and more just with the Pokegirls he'd caught on his way to VerMuffEatin'. Still, painful to spend that much on a piece of specialized equipment. Light-amplification was apparently still expensive… he didn't even want to think about the pair that had infrared. That bitch cost 50000 for a single pair of goggles.

When he returned to the Pokecenter in the afternoon, he dropped Salohiel off for her own Cleaning and Healing cycles, and picked up Xiao, Pythia, and Grace before heading to his room to take a nap. For the rest of the afternoon.

When he awoke, the sun had gone down. Checking the clock in the room he saw that it was 10:17PM. With Salohiel picked up, he let Grace out of her 'Ball.

"Hey there." He said, looking at the Arachnid-based Pokegirl. She'd gotten some new clothing, too. Basic stuff, really. A T-Shirt, a skirt, a pair of shoes.. Nothing spectacular.

"Hello, Master." She said, stretching a bit to get used to movement again. Cleaning Cycles… They felt like someone had rubbed her skin raw, she noted. "Are we Taming? Fighting? Or Travelling?" She asked. Those seemed like the three most likely probabilities based on her knowledge of what Tamers do.

"Travelling." Markus said, beginning to walk. "We're going hunting. Night-hunting, specifically, but our goal is a few days away from here. So, I figured this would be a perfect time to get used to each other…." he saw the smirk on her face in the street-lights. "Not like that, Perv." He chuckled. "I mean in the sense of working with each other. Plenty of Ferals between here and there, and not all of which I want to capture. Some aren't worth it, some are just too common… I've got a buttload of Pokeballs stored up, but I don't wanna use 'em up willy nilly. Then we'll make for Lavenderriere Town. Always one of my favorite locations in the games, Lavender Town." He could easily remember the Pokemon Tower with the graveyard, the simple music, the fun NPCs and their various insane word-bubbles…

"I thought you called it 'Lavenderrier Town?'" Grace asked. "Why did you say 'Lavender Town?'"

"It's something from my old life." He shrugged. "Don't worry too much about it, just yet. I'll tell you the whole story later." He still didn't quite trust her… Pythia? He bought her legally fair and square. Same with Xiao even if the Slicer had turned out to be a sexpot. Salohiel was the first being he'd come into contact with in this new life… So he was inclined to trust her. Not only that, but she was a Celestial. For all his love of Infernals? Celestials definitely seemed much more likely not to rip him a new asshole.

"I understand, Master." Grace said, following along as Markus walked to the edge of VerMuffEatin' City. The Gatehouse was once again staffed by humorless soldiers. It seemed that at night they were more open with having weapons, and had rifles strapped to their bodies with what Markus could only assume were Elemental Rounds loaded.

"Your passport says you wanted to try the Gym." The man checking him out said. "But no records of you going in."

"Yeah, got a tip that there might be a pack of Vampira somewhere near Lavenderrier Town. Figured I'd see if I can't find 'em. And if there's a Vampire there, I can confirm it to the League if I can't catch her." Markus explained. He really didn't want the 'proper authorities' to get involved in this hunt, but if he lied they'd probably never let him back in.

"Understood." The man said. "If you do find out there's a Vampire there? Give us a call. If you can capture her, then it'll notify us when you register her at a Pokecenter. If you can't? Notify the League if you don't die. Good luck, and don't get bitten." He finished, letting Markus pass through and out into the semi-stable Route 8.

The soldiers behind him watched before they broke their 'unfeeling' facade and went back inside their shack to pick up the card game they'd been playing previously.

"Think he'll find it?" one asked.

"If he does? More's the pity, Vampires are hell to take care of. If he doesn't? Who gives a fuck. You gonna bid or not?" the other answered.

One smegging week, and Markus was already missing the road. With the roads available? He was able to make pretty good time. Once he left them however, he had to rely on Salohiel and Pythia telling him where the hell he was. He kept Grace out of her ball most of the time, letting her hunt the Ferals and small game in the massively forested area that used to be the United States of America… or at least a part of it.

She used paralyzing venom on the Ferals before cocooning them up in webbing, attacking from ambush more often than not before dragging the limp Pokegirls back to camp so Markus would put them in Pokeballs for later sale. On game, she caught, killed with a sharp blow to the head, and then brought back to camp where Xiao would be called out to skin and clean the meat for cooking. Rabbits. Lots and lots of rabbits. A few birds here and there, which Markus usually turned into soup by boiling the bones in filtered water from a stream they were following and then adding a few vegetables in along with the bird meat. He had to wait until they had at least 5 of the little bastards before he could make a decent soup out of them… And even then? Sometimes he just said 'fuck it' and roasted them over a fire, which usually turned out much better.

Still, Grace was re-learning her old tricks, and every night she'd join in conversation between Markus and whichever of her Harem-sisters he'd had on the schedule. Salohiel was always good for a talk, but she didn't seem to like Grace being involved in 'Taming time.' Pythia was almost painfully shy, and loved to talk about stars and such, which flew right over Grace's head. Xiao, on the other hand?

Xiao was talkative, and seemed to take a 'seefood diet' approach when it came to Taming. Namely, she loved Taming, be it with Grace, Pythia, or Markus. She loved to lick, suck, be licked or sucked, and seemed endlessly fascinated with having fingers or dicks inside her, usually both if she could get it.

Xiao, for her part, loved the new addition. She definitely enjoyed the time when Markus had finished Taming her and she asked Grace to tie her up in a tree for some kinkier 'just us Pokegirls' Taming. The silk felt heavenly as she hung from that branch, with Grace shoving her face between her legs… The positioning was awkward, sure, but that just added a bit of spice to the whole situation! And the new girl could last a lot longer than Pythia. There was only so often you could reduce a girl to a puddle of orgasmic goo before the knowledge that 3 minutes of foreplay could do the same just made the whole thing seem less like it was your skill and more just the other girl being very very easy to please…

Still. It had been a week with Grace as the Pokegirl most commonly out of her 'ball. Markus and Grace had been rather awkwardly (on his part) trying to get to know one another. Grace didn't see how it was so awkward. She didn't even know herself, so it was more just her getting to know him.

Tonight's attempt at 'getting to know you' involved a rousing game of…

"Would you rather… Get a manicure, or see a movie?" Markus asked.

"Movie." Grace responded, easily. "My nails are fine enough, but I've seen in the movies how women would get their nails 'cared for.' it looks painful."

"My thoughts exactly, on that front." Markus said, nodding. "Your turn."

Grace pondered before speaking. "Would you rather… Have an endless supply of your 'curry' but never get to Tame again, or have a powerful Harem, respect, and status but never eat Curry again?" she asked. Hers was more involved, but she'd heard him bemoan the lack of 'curry' and his soliloquy to the 'food which proves god loves us and wants us to be happy' in his kit and pre-prepared meals.

"Owch. hardball right off?" Markus asked, wincing at the question. "Hmmm." he pondered. The rules didn't let him say 'fucking neither' so he had to choose. If she'd asked him this back in his old world? Endless curry, but no sex ever or sexytimes with power and status but no Curry? He'd have told everyone to fuck off and leave him alone with his endless supply of Curry. But now?

"...Shit." he sighed. "I guess I'd have to give up the Curry. Sex is just too goddamn good to give up, now that I've had good sex… I'd miss Curry, but giving up Taming Salohiel, Pythia, Xiao and you? Fuck no. Giving up Xiao's ass alone is a crime against nature." he explained, at least partially for his own benefit. "My turn."

He pondered for a few minutes as he poked at the fire, deciding to go a bit harder on her than the opening softball questions he'd had planned. "Would you rather… be a Joulogumo, or be an Angel?" he asked. Thinking of these on the fly was hard, damn it!

"I'd rather be a Joulogumo." she said after a moment's thought. "Something about being winged, and without most of my legs or the ability to grow those legs when I wanted to, sits wrong with me." she finished. "Would you rather… Kill the Vampira pack we're hunting, but gain the Vampire, or kill the vampire in exchange for a dozen Vampira?" she asked.

"Wow. You're fuckin' good at this." he chuckled nervously. "I think I'd rather not kill anyone involved in that. Ferals are just… Doing what they do, and Taming them gives them a human mindset to work with. The Vampire we might run into might have been tame, once, and simply lost herself, buried beneath her feral instincts. Meanwhile the Vampira might be the same. Purely monetarily, the Vampira would be worth more by numbers, and I wouldn't want to sell the Vampire, but reducing life to monetary value is something I really dislike…"

"And yet you 'bought' Xiao and Pythia." grace noted. No condemnation in her voice, simply her stating facts as she saw them. Markus winced.

"Yeah. And it took me a few days to come to terms with that fact." he sighed. "It's a balance in this world, holding into the morals I need to keep being ME, but adapting to survive in the changed situation." he explained.

"Why are your morals different from others?" she asked.

"Because… Well, fuck it. I'm tired of dancing about the whole thing. I'm not originally from here. This body? Totally native. But my mind? My memories? No. I wrote stories in this world. I was just some shmuck who wound up like one of his characters, finding himself in the world I'd written, helped to build and refine… And now I get to see it all up-close and personal. I helped write revisions for Pokegirl species like the Sharptits. I wrote in whole new breeds when I wanted, like the Wraith, the Pardoner and the Polterkissed. I actually wrote in the Slot League. When I first joined the community? All that was really said about the place was the name, Tyroon or Slot League, and the fact that the Vegeta Valley was there with Sayjin Pokegirls." he took a breath and continued, powering through the sheer awkward of this moment.

"I wrote about Megami, I wrote about Zombabe outbreaks in my own personal alternate universe, with me as the main character hilariously enough because I wanted to do a bit of wish-fulfillment and bitch about the idiocy of the zombie-movie genre… I wrote in the 'canon' universe with a few short stories here and there. Nothing big on that front, because I kept getting derailed due to me either losing interest in the writing or because I thought my writing sucked gigantic hairy donkey balls. Fought against certain revisions, fought to not accept the Silver Islands League or… Whatever the hell it's called that used to be the Hawaiian Islands." he shook his head at the memory. "Then? I left the community. Over a few disagreements and personality clashes." he sighed.

"Eight smegging years later? I came back because I had an idea for a story, and figured it'd be better to have input than not. And then, about a month and a half ago? I woke up here. Went to sleep one night after my dead-end job working security and woke up in bed with Salohiel. Nearly puked I was so fucking scared. Thought I'd gotten so damned drunk I'd forgotten getting to Las Vegas, hooking up, and having sex, and lord only knows what other drugs would have been involved for that kind of memory loss. I was scared out of my mind that I'd wind up at the Greybar Hotel, a colloquial term for prison, that I hid in the damned bathroom for a while before finally my stomach calmed down. Figured I'd have to face the music, might as well do it with my feet facing forward, ya know?" he slumped slightly.

"So…. you believe you were… What? A God of this world?" Grace asked.

"No, nothing so menial." Markus chuckled. "I was an _Author_." he stressed the last word with more meaning. "I wrote about Gods. I designed new species, wrote them into the history of the world… And now I've been written into the history of the world. Ironic, no?"

"Poetic justice, I think." Grace said. "You approved of the nature of this world? The use of Pokegirls in battles, the massive deaths in our history?" She asked.

"No, no, no. I had nothing to do with that stuff. Most everything was already set up by the time I even heard of the community. I just took over the Slot League, did my own thing, and added to what was already here. It was a porn-fantasy we wrote about because the writing was fun. It was a way to unwind, live vicariously through our characters, explore concepts we wanted to flesh out about the world… It's why Slot is a Mageocracy. I wanted it to be one, because I figured it'd make sense for one government out there to be filled with magic Users, since before Sukebe Magic wasn't known to exist. Eventually a cabal of mages would get it into their heads to take over a country and run it because magic, by their definition, required knowledge, and knowledge led eventually to wisdom, and as such mages were obviously the 'most fit to run a government.' So I wrote about the Slot League's Rebellion against a corrupt government, the installation of the Mageocracy… I left a LOT open for others to add or improve as they saw fit, unlike with the Indigo league, which was written by a guy called 'RedPriest' and he based the whole thing off another guy, MetroAnime, who started this whole shindig with his original story involving 'Ranma 'One-half'' and Pokemon, a video game that'd come out about collecting creatures, battling them… Sound familiar yet? Yeah. hence, 'Pokegirls.' PokeMON, Pocket Monsters. Came out of Japan…" he sighed.

"Well, good to know our world is a porn-fantasy for a bunch of people in another world." Grace snarked. "Based on a sexualized video game." she finished, chuckling. It was kind of… Surreal. She was almost convinced her Tamer was playing a joke, but the look in his eyes showed no signs of him lying, or even stretching the truth. "So. You wrote our world."

"Yep. I always loved your breed." he sighed, leaning back and laying on the ground, his legs on the log, like he was sitting but sideways. "I loved spiders in my life. Always thought 'Spider girls' were kind of sexy. Partially because of the danger involved. I loved Infernal breeds like the Mazouku, Youma, Demoness… Even the Dark Lady. Loved 'em all, because I was young, stupid, and loved that 'edgy' crap. When I came back I'd been having a serious hard-on for angelic imagery, though, so I switched my adoration to Celestial Pokegirls, especially Angels… I had an Archangel revision in the works, actually." he laughed. "It's kind of hilarious how things wound up."

Grace didn't know if she blushed or not. Her emotions were all over the place. Her Tamer was either insane or telling the truth and was part of a group responsible for wars, deaths, plagues on human and Pokegirl alike, including Pokegirl's need for taming… "So… Why do we need taming? Why did Sukebe do it?" she asked.

"Jim Sukotto was a madman, but he was basically our whipping-boy when it came to explaining things." Markus shrugged, his shoulders messing up the layer of dirt and plant debris on the ground. "We had a lot of debates on the nature of taming, but most of it came down to 'we like porn. Shut up and just enjoy the porn.' I always thought he did it as a control mechanism, but that could swing the way of making no sense. It could also have just been Sukebe's perversion, wanting what any man wants. A woman who'd worship him, love him, and who'd let him get laid whenever he wanted. Hell, for all Iknow? It was a mistake in how he made the first batch of Pokegirls and he just didn't survive long enough to fix it. The War of Revenge wasn't a pleasant bit of history, even if we glossed over it in the stories, only putting it in timeline compilations and such."

Grace had to laugh. The Authors of their world just liked to watch porn. How horrifyingly apropos. "So, now that you're here, seeing your creation in all it's beauty and horror, you're trying to keep what little morals you had?" she asked.

"Pretty much." he looked over at her and grinned, winking. "I wasn't a good man to begin with. Emotional balance problems, brain chemical imbalances galore. My brain broke down serotonin too fast, which caused massive mood swings, usually levelling out to a state of apathy with spikes of happiness and energy to lows of rage and suicidal or homicidal thoughts. Now that I don't have to contend with all of that? I find that this whole world is… Beautiful, but terrible, just like our creations. Beautiful and terrible."

With that the conversation trailed off. He hadn't even told Salohiel the full story of this thing. He'd only made mention of writing stories in this world, not the full implications… Then again he was nearly afraid that Salohiel either thought he was in shock at the time or that she'd figured it all out anyway. Either option was scary in their own ways.

Still, when Grace came over and laid down next to him on the ground, he was more than slightly pleased. At least she didn't hate him! She might think he's crazy, or she might think he was some kind of cruel nigh-chthonic being. Still, she didn't tense up when he held her hand, so… Win?

That night passed with only three small Ferals wandering into camp. A Bunnygirl, a Titmouse, and a Kitsune. When Markus awoke and saw the three of them webbed up and paralyzed? He was seriously beginning to wonder if perhaps he should actually consider keeping one of the many Kitsune he was catching. Never let it be said he was immune to the 'fox-girl' fetish... Maybe he'd try to get one from a Ranch or something. He still wasn't totally comfortable with 'she's got fur' as a descriptive used for someone he'd regularly have sex with.

The irony of him gleefully having sex with a girl who could turn into a half-spider creature out of most people's nightmares, but not with a animorphic species with a bit of 'excess hair' was not lost on him.

The days and nights passed relatively quietly once he got to the area marked on his map. He still had about a week's worth of food, the stream nearby was plentiful for his canteen, and his camping site was scenic on its own. It was situated in a small clearing about 50ft away from a steep hill hidden by thick forest growth. In the daytime it was practically a breathing thing, the air clean and the the ground a shade of Green Markus, a native of Minnesota, was only used to seeing in spring. At night it was a few dancing lights and distant singing voices away from being an enchanted fairy forest.

The first night, Markus had Grace setting up Triplines all over their area, in the trees and on the ground, leading them back to a central point in the camp. It was a trick he'd learned after she told him she could do it… he'd always wondered just what the fuck 'Tripline' had meant in the Arachnae entry. Now he knew. Pythia set up an Alarm ward around the camp, and Xiao had set herself up with a nice lean-to next to Markus's tent. Salohiel meanwhile had taken to the skies and began scouting. During the daytime? It was unlikely they'd run into anything, but she wanted to have a decent idea of where things were in this area in case they needed to withdraw to a more defensible position.

As the flew, She mentally divided the surveyed area into a series of grid coordinates, each one marked by some defensive structure. A particularly tall and sturdy tree here, a large rock they could climb there, a choke-point made by small water-carved walls of rock over there. She took a few pot-shots at other flying pokegirls when she needed to. Like the Rack who nearly attacked her. And the sheer number of Pidgys about made her want to scream, considering they would fly at the slightest whisper of something nearby. They'd fly, get in her way, and cause all kinds of hell for her to avoid them. After one got just a little too close and forced her to recover mid-flight, she just KNEW she'd have to clean out her wings. Brown feathers really mussed up her look, and she had no doubt at least a few had gotten mingled in with her nice, clean white feathers…

Heaven help the poor girl if Salohiel found herself missing any of her own feathers. She'd hunt down the little bint and rip out her flight her feathers for things like Feather Shuriken? That's different. Losing them to a collision with a Pokegirl having the average intelligence of an actual bird? Less dignified.

It was only when the immediate area was scouted out thoroughly and the larger area scouted from an aerial perspective that Markus allowed himself to actually relax. He'd pulled Pythia into his lap and had her explain the basics of Magic once again, beginning with the mental exercises needed to discover or develop one's own ability to gather mana from the air. It apparently involved imagining a flame, and breathing on it to feed it 'oxygen' in the form of Mana.

Pythia, just going through how she was taught the theory as being a pure Magic Type she'd been able to do this since she was born out in the wild, released small sparks of Mana into her Tamer in order for him to know the feeling of Mana, and potentially jumpstart the process. It was part physical, part mental and all metaphysical. Most people coming into it without any natural talent needed the jumpstart. Like priming a well.

Markus's mental 'flame' was… unimpressive, when he studied it. He felt the jolts of energy, tingling and not unpleasant, as they entered him. He felt the stuttering of that small flame as he tried to 'breath' the flame onto it… This whole exercise was like trying to make smoke patterns out of thought. Not just thinking of the patterns, but actually taking one's thoughts and physically turning them into smoke patterns… having Pythia on his lap both helped and hindered, so it was a net balance. On the one hand? She was channeling small bits of Mana into him, letting him get the feel for them in concentrated form rather than the much more dispersed form in the air or in the earth.

On the other hand? She was on his goddamned lap. He was leaning his chin on her shoulder. And she was using that shampoo he'd bought for them with the floral scent he liked. Lavender, mostly… Distracting. Still, he kept on it. If he could do this, get the feel of it without Pythia being there to 'prime the pump,' then he might, eventually, be capable of casting spells. This was something he'd wanted with all of his heart and soul for years before he'd even considered writing for Pokegirls. Dungeons & Dragons always saw him playing a Wizard.

Meanwhile, Xiao was working with Salohiel… oddly? Salohiel seemed to be inordinately good at fighting with her body, not counting her wings. She didn't seem to have the 'form' for it like Xiao did which Markus chalked up to her not being a Fighting Type, but she seemed to have a deep and abiding knowledge of fighting techniques. With a summoned sword of her own, Salohiel and Xiao sparred, clashing every few seconds as Xiao tried to get through the much more experienced Pokegirl's defense. The few times she'd managed to potentially get a strike in? Salohiel's wings materialized and blocked the blow with a 'shield' steel-like feathers.

"You're getting better." Salohiel noted. "I actually have to try a little, now." The smirk on her face showed only the slightest hint of joking condescension.

"Yeah, and maybe one day you'll explain why you're so damned good at this. Or maybe I'll just evolve and beat you that way." Xiao countered.

"I've fought Ronin before…" Salohiel began, but was cut off by Xiao, growling.

"I won't be a goddamned 'Ronin!'" She shouted, swinging her Guan Dao just a bit heavier. "Goddamned ethnocentric species names! Goddamned Sukebe Madman Japanophile! I'm Han Chinese, damn it! My mother was Han Chinese, my father was Han Chinese, and *I* am Han Chinese! Not fucking Japanese, not a fucking 'Ronin!'"

Pythia sighed from her position in Markus's lap. "Here she goes. Knew this was coming, just couldn't figure out *when.*" she said. "Han Chinese is the old ethnicities of the mainland Edo League."

Xiao growled again. "And that? That's not my fault! Stupid Japanese love from the whole damned world, stupid 'Edo' League! Why couldn't it have been the 'Three Kingdoms League' or something, huh? China, Korea and Japanese. Three Kingdoms, and a good C. Chinese reference for the part of the league that makes up most of the actual landmass!" She swung her Guan Dao once again, following with a sweep of her legs, which Salohiel both blocked and jumped over respectively. "When I evolve? I'm calling myself a Youxia, damn it!" She finished.

Markus nodded. "Historically, there are similar themes between 'Wandering Hero' and a 'Masterless Samurai' in literature… Well, without one being a disgraced former Samurai. Plenty of masterless Samurai who never had a master, though… Still, youxia were celebrated, rather than reviled. They followed a code much more individualistic than Bushido. Much more focused on personal skill and virtue than on virtue through service to a Lord." He explained. "I did my final research paper on ancient China's martial legends, so I can understand the annoyance. Never understood why Ronin came before Samurai in the Slicer evolutionary line… You needed, in most cases, to be a samurai first before you could become a Ronin, and becoming a Samurai after being Ronin almost never happened."

"Master has an interest in Chinese legends?" Xiao asked, stopping the spar and looking over at him.

"Oh, yes. Definitely. I was majoring in Asian Languages and Literature. Only reason I didn't get my Bachelor's Degree was because I couldn't finish the Chinese Language course. Got stuck at Intermediate, because the teaching style didn't mesh well with my learning style."

"And no interest in japanese?" She asked, seeming hopeful.

"Oh, hell yes. I used to be a total Japanophile. Only reason I got into Chinese is because the school I was at during the that time didn't offer intermediate Japanese. Still, it was a good switch. I like Wuxia movies far more than I enjoyed most anime.. Mainly because after a while I began genuinely hating most anime. I only got into it again when Isekai became a popular genre."

Xiao gave him a deadpan look, though his eyes were closed. "How very Ironic, master." She said, her voice a monotone.

"Don't pout, Xiao. I found more interest in Chinese than I did in Japanese. I learned all I could. The spread of Buddhism through China, ancient religions and practices, I even took a chinese calligraphy course. Both semesters of it. Loved the hell out of that class. Seriously, need to get back into it. If I ever see a Chinese Ar-tits who focuses on Calligraphy? I'll cream my pants. I'd love to have someone to practice with."

Xiao made a note to try and call her mother… If she was going to work with her current Master, she'd try to share at least some interests. And her mother had always said that Calligraphy and Swordplay were linked… but then? Her mother refused to take any kind of name and used a straight-sword, so Xiao 'I love my Guan Dao' herself had taken that with a grain of salt. Proof positive that Parthenogenesis didn't mean they were exactly alike.

It stayed calm for the first few days at that campsite. Until the full moon…

/end_


	5. This went dark rather quickly

/Run Authors_Notes v5.3 update

I've been running this chapter in my had for the last month + or so. It's only gotten to the point that I'm able to write the damned thing out because I've hit a wall on my original story. I'm stuck, so here I am, back on this project, hopefully to get another 10k words done so's I can post this shit. Anywho, here we go. Once again i warn people, these chapters are being posted one after another, pre-written, so no responses in the chapters. Also that's against FF.N rules, so all responses will be in PM, unless you're anonymous, in which case I'll be responding as shortly as possible.

/Run

Vampires, Vampira, choices choices.

Markus' camp with his 4-Pokegirl Harem was, by and large, a quiet thing when it all came down to it. He'd managed to settle Xiao down with promises to work on his Chinese with her (Hey, she was willing to tutor him on the language? Who was he to turn that down?) by talking in Chinese to her, even learning basic orders to shout in a battle.

The conversation was stilted, halting, and filled with a lot of explanations and clarifications on Xiao's part along with pointing out characters for the words she was using, or wanted him to use, but it was progress.

When night came, he had a watch rotation set up, ready to keep an eye out on things. First up was Salohiel while Markus himself took the last watch. The only exception to this was Grace, who was out at all times due to being connected to her Tripline, sleeping or not. Pain in the ass for him, since he was oddly a nocturnal man for the most part. Not his fault night time was when the world was at its best for him. Quiet, calm, and altogether much less harsh than in the searing light of day. Still, he'd been getting used to a more diurnal schedule. It helped when he could wear himself out by banging one of the Pokegirls like a drum.

It was only somewhat odd to see Grace, in her half-spider form, sleeping in a web she'd spun between two branches, and if Markus hadn't gotten over his entemophobia years ago, he'd probably have crapped himself at seeing the girl in her full spidery glory, hanging over his camp like the Sword of Damocles. But he had gotten over it. He kept telling himself that, at least.

The Pokegirl du jour for wearing him out? Xiao. She took that job seriously, as the sun had hardly set before Markus found himself being pulled into his tent by a pair of strong arms and practically ridden like a prize pony.

Irony, Xiao was the one bought as a prize… Markus' mind still had a tough time accepting that he'd fucking _bought_ someone, but a disturbingly large part of him told the rest of him to shut the hell up and enjoy this.

Still, the first night was eerily quiet. Grace, when Markus took over the watch for the last few hours, reported that she'd felt a few touches on her webs, but nothing major. Just some game which was prepped and ready for cooking. She'd been learning from Xiao how to skin and clean the meat, and from Markus about how to prep the bones for cooking into stock.

Grace decided to stay up, it was only another 2 hours before sunrise anyway… And it wasn't like the group had a set time-table, or schedule to keep out in the wilds aside from making sure _someone_ was on guard duty at night and who needed Taming at any given time. She watched as Markus, keeping his eyes open and ears listening, prepped for making breakfast, along with prepping the meat they'd gotten, a brace of rabbits, for stew that night.

"You know? I used to watch a bunch of 'cooking in the 17th Century' shows on Youtube. It was kind of fun to see the old recipes people used. Never thought I'd get the chance to use 'em." Markus said as he stirred the miso soup he was making. Call him kooky, but Miso soup was delicious.

"I'm sure there were a lot of things you never expected that are coming true." Grace said, a slight note of snark in her voice.

"Yep. For one? I got to meet an Arachnae. To whit, one who is seemingly genetically based on a species of spider I find absolutely pants-crappingly terrifying." Markus said, giving Grace a pointed look. "Not a bad thing. Fear is a good motivator. But there's a reason I never ask you for oral. I know way too much about how Brown Recluse venom works to be comfortable around it, or it being around certain delicate parts of my anatomy."

"You realize I don't actually have the venom of the spider species I take after, right?" She asked. "I've checked. I can produce a variety of poisons, but so can any other Poison-type. Same general range. Lust, paralysis, general cellular damage, And once it's run its course, it's gone. Not to mention a single Antidote is a wide-angle anti-toxin," she explained. She had been checking, and she had also noticed that her Tamer had never once asked her to give him 'head' which he'd done at least once with the others.

Salohiel refused to do anything when they weren't alone, or with maybe one other Pokegirl in the Harem. Pythia seemed painfully shy. And Xiao… Well, Xiao was more likely to take it as an invitation for more afterwards. But he expressly avoided Grace in terms of oral. Not that she could really blame him. The idea of sticking a sensitive piece of one's anatomy into a mouth alone seemed odd to her, let alone the thought of the teeth in that mouth being able to produce poison which could cause it to fall off or just intense, burning, throbbing, pain must be terrifying.

"Ever heard of the Bullet Ant?" He asked. "It's an ant that used to live in South America, what's now called Tyroon. I'm pretty sure they survived… but the reason they're called ''Bullet Ants' is because getting bit by one is the single most painful poison in the insect world according to the Schmidt Pain index. I'm not sure if that's entirely accurate, but I once saw a guy get bit by one, and he said it felt like he'd been shot in the arm where he'd gotten bit. His arm was paralyzed for hours due to the pain."

"At least I got a Tamer who knows how to sweet talk a girl…" Grace said, a note of sarcasm in her voice letting Markus know that, yes, she was in fact living up to the sobriquet given to her breed.

Markus shrugged and sat back from his cooking. A little bit of meat was simmering with some tomatoes in the pan. Rabbit sausage. It was something new he wanted to try. "At least I know the difference between Poison and Venom?" He offered, putting an arm over Grace's shoulders. "Poison is ingested. Venom is injected."

"So, not a moron. Got it." Grace said, laughing a little before suddenly stopping and tensing slightly. Markus saw her eyes focus on one tripline thread of silk which was, to his vision, completely still… but Grace had a foot on it, so maybe…

"Got something?" He asked.

She nodded before standing up and her body shifted. Before Markus could really describe what was going on, Grace's skirt was hanging around the beginnings of a large spindly spider-body while her upper body remained mostly the same, save for the claws, and distinctly spider-like jaw-structure, and the chitinous exoskeletal 'armor.'

With barely a whisper, she was off into the woods. Markus sat where he was, unsure of whether to interfere, or if he should just let Grace do her thing.

By the time he decided to let Grace do her own thing, however, she was already coming back with a silk-wrapped bundle dragging behind her. Said bundle was squirming slightly, but either the silk was stronger than Markus gave it credit, or Grace had paralyzed the creature within and it was trying to fight through it.

Either way? Markus wanted to be prepared.

"I caught this one." Grace said, shoving the wrapped bundle close to the fire. "She was stuck in one of my webs near the outer edges. Looked like she'd stepped on a thread, then got tangled up trying to get loose, setting off my Tripline as she struggled. Traces of others around, there was a large group of them, but once one got stuck, the others took off."

Markus nodded, looking at the bundle and wondering if it was a Vampira, a pack of which would mean a Vampire was nearby, or maybe a Zubutt? Maybe she was another bat-like species? Or maybe she wasn't bat-like at all and he was just jumping to conclusions. Either way…

"Master?" Pythia's voice, tired and drawn, sounded from the tent. She'd been kept out for the sake of monitoring her Alarm spell, among other reasons. "Do we have a visitor?"

"Yes, indeed we do Pythia." Markus grinned. "Grace here caught one. I was just about to scan it to see what it is. Grace? If you'd be so kind as to bind her up a bit tighter from the neck down?" He asked, motioning for the spider-like girl to web up the girl more.

Grace nodded and picked up the girl, letting her spinnerets cover the girl in yet more sticky, strong webbing. With an almost evil smile on her face, Grace pulled the girl up into the air and attached a thread to where the Pokegirl's feet were wrapped up, letting her dangle from the tree branch to which she attached the other end.

Markus watched with a satisfied smile. Grace was showing initiative again. Sarcasm? Yep. Will of her own? Definitely… Now he just had to get over the fact that he'd wiped out her entire personality and memory of her previous life. It'd be easy.

Sarcasm. Not limited to communication with others!

When the girl was secured and dangling, Markus went to the webbed up form and pulled at the webbing around where he hoped the girl's face would be. It took the help of a pocket knife in the end, since he didn't want to ask grace for yet more help… Call it one of the many small battles his diminished machismo wouldn't let him surrender. Asking for help opening a jar of pickles, for instance.

When he peeled away the surprisingly strong silk threads, he saw a pale female face with wild red eyes, a small nose and chin, full red lips… He could see some of that color running slightly up her face, and some spots on her chin which made him wonder if the color wasn't all natural but from a defined _liquid_ source.

When her lips parted, Markus could see the elongated K9 teeth also smeared slightly with red amidst the saliva.

A quick scan with his Pokedex confirmed.

**VAMPIRA (aka BATGIRL), the Night Flyer Pokégirl**

**Type**: Near Human

**Element**: Dark/Flying

**Frequency**: Rare

**Diet**: Human style food, with occasional blood or vitamin supplements

**Role**: Night security guard

**Libido**: Average

**Strong Vs**: Bug, Dark, Fighting, Ghost, Ground, Plant, Psychic

**Weak Vs**: Electric, Ice, Rock

**Attacks**: Slash, Dark Blade, Dark Bomb, Drain, Tenebrous Strike, Empty Daggers, Wing Attack

**Weaknesses**: Torpid during the day

"Yup. Grace just caught our first real lead on this… but I really don't want to leave her Feral. They're easy to deal with, but if there's really a group around here? That means we can catch a bunch of them, and if we can find the Vampire we'll be set." Markus said, elated at the thought of this plan going through with minimal hitches and actually staying on-track.

Pythia yawned and looked at the Vampira. "Give me some of her hair, and a few hours, and I can probably find out where they lair in the day." She said. "I'm still not entirely certain about your desire for a Vampire, Master…" She'd looked. The future was unclear. Too many possibilities. In the most likely future? All she saw was her Tamer walking out of the woods towards Lavenderriere Town like it was any other day. Anything before that was too turbulent and after that was too varied to make any reliable prediction.

"Simple. Vampires are cool. I like Vampires. Vampires are also powerful combatants at night, and can be incredibly useful for the psychological factor they represent. I wont lie and say that i don't want a Vampire simply so's I can say I have a Vampire, but I wont keep her around if she turns out to be useless, combative within the Harem, or just a bad fit for us. If nothing else? There are two things that'll come form this. If we find her and catch her? No feral Vampire attacks, no turning people into Vampire Pokegirls, and we can get paid a buttload of money for selling her to a ranch…"

Markus was almost disturbed by how easily he'd said he could sell off the Vampire once caught… And looking back? He hadn't really thought overmuch about selling off the Bunnygirls, Kitsune, or other various common breeds he'd caught on his trip. He had no idea what happened to them, but he had guesses and those guesses were not pretty by a 'modern' moral standard… But that part of him which told him to shut up and enjoy the world reared its ugly head once more and told him that it was that or be utterly screwed in this world.

He knew intimately that the Pokegirl world had no mercy for the weak, and while he'd always been told that compassion was a strength? In short-term survival, it was a liability. Compassion could come later, when there was stability. Out here in the wilderness? It was kill or be raped and then killed. And he was, as the male, the 'soft and squishy one' of the group, damn it!

Pythia, meanwhile, nodded and took stock of that information. It was a good thing to do, clearing out a Feral with the ability to turn others, including humans, into its own breed. "Alright, Master. Some hair, please?" She held out a hand.

Markus peeled more of the silk off of the girl's head, showing the girl was a brunette with dark, almost black, hair. The girl, now that her face was free, simply glared at Markus as he reached out and grabbed a strand of her hair, plucking it as quickly as he could. "Ow! Asshole!" She shouted.

Markus nearly jumped when the girl spoke, almost dropping the hair in the dark. Pythia quickly snatched it and stumbled back to the tent, yawning again. Her Tamer had this in hand, and she still had about 4 hours of sleep to see to… Scrying could come later.

While Pythia was answering the siren call of Morpheus, Markus looked at the glaring Vampira curiously. He was trying to get a read on the girl but being upside down, and not actually human no matter how human she looked, it was difficult at best.

"So…" he started. "You can speak English?" He asked. He remembered very little about Vampira as a whole, save for what he'd just read in the pokedex entry, so he knew she'd be 'broody' but beyond that? Nothing.

"Yeah. I can speak english, douchebag, and when the Mistress gets you? You'll be sorry you had spider-bitch there tie me up! Could have been nice and easy. We were just gonna grab you, bring you to the Mistress, and get our share of blood after she'd had her fun. But no. I had to get fucking caught." She groused.

"Well, that confirms it. Vampire in control. Feral or not is still up to debate." Markus sighed. "Look. I'll go to your Mistress right now, but you look kind of hungry…" he said, looking back at the upside-down bat-girl and pushed the pocket-knife's edge against the palm of his hand, letting it cut into the flesh just enough for some blood to leak. He'd taken pains to sharpen that damned thing, so it was relatively easy once he moved the knife to get a decent flow of blood…. Still hurt like a bitch, but he'd been playing with knives for years.

At the smell of blood the girl tensed up, and whatever paralysis she was suffering seeed to lose a lot more ground as she tried valiantly to get free of the extra-thick webbing around her whole body. Markus cupped the now bleeding hand slightly to let the blood pool in his palm as it seeped slowly out of the wound.

"Good girls get treats." He said, trying to put a 'take charge' toneto his voice. "Good girls who tell me where their Mistress is get a snack. They might even get cut down so they can drink it properly." He held the bloody hand near her face, a line of blood escaping what little seal he could make between his thumb and palm to lazily drip down the back of his hand.

"Cut me down, and I'll tell you where she is, but only if you let me lead you, like I subdued you." The girl said, her eyes not leaving the delicious, nutritious blood slowly forming a drop which would be tragically wasted on the ground below. It was still dark, but she could see perfectly fine by the firelight.

"I'll cut you down, and you'll tell me, and I'll give you a treat." He said. "Then you'll take me to your Mistress." He was counting on her not being a slave to the Vampire after she got her 'treat.' It would be a Taming. He knew it. She probably knew it, and while part of her was enslaved to a Vampire, she was still a Pokegirl… Low Feral state or no.

When Grace detached the thread from the tree and lowered the girl to the ground, Markus held his hand to the girl's lips,, very careful not to let her bite him. She might not be a vampire, able to turn him into a Vampire herself, but he had a definitely plan. While he'd certainly need to bandage his hand, he didn't want to add insult to injury by having to worry about a bite-wound. That and he knew the kinds of shit that happened when a human bit someone. He didn't know if those bacteria lived in Pokegirl mouths, but he wasn't gonna take that chance without some further research and confirmation from scientific sources, thanks.

As the girl lapped up the blood, Markus held his hand steady for her, leaning her against the tree. When she was finished, and was simply lapping at the seeping blood as it came up through the wound, Markus took his hand back and went for his first-aid kit.

When he came back, his hand wrapped carefully with antibiotic ointment, gauze, some super-glue to keep the wound closed, and medical tape to make sure everything stayed closed and clean, he looked down at the girl happily still licking her lips of the fresh blood shed gotten. In the dark, the girl looked like she'd just eaten a nice big dinner with an ice-cream dessert. He began maneuvering the girl, her wrapped form making it only slightly awkward.

He put her, stomach down, bent over a log he'd been suing as a bench. Her face was in the soft dirt while her ass was held up by the log. Her hands, nowhere to be seen beneath all of the webbing, could do nothing for her position and Markus could almost see through the webs, the girl squirming about a bit so her chest was in a less awkward place. Still, he'd told himself, and her, she'd get a 'treat' so he looked at the 'prize.'

This was his first time trying to Tame a Feral out in the middle of god's nowhere, so… It was a bit of awkwardness he shoved into the back of his mind as fast as he could. He reached for her ass, the point where her body could bend over the log, and felt the silk covering her, moving his hands over it. It'd dried so the 'sticky' part was blessedly no longer a problem, but it still stuck to her, and stuck to itself like crazy-glue.

So, he carefully took out his pocket knife again and pulled some of the material away, cutting a hole in it away from the skin so he could at least see what he was working with. When he cut the piece away, the firelight helped him see pale flesh resting above a black leathery material. Markus remembered that Vampira 'always' look like they're wearing a cloak, which is actually a pair of bat wings, so he could only assume she'd managed to get the wings out of the way for this. Given that he saw her glistening beneath the webbing, and the webbing which was actually touching her lower lips was soaked when he tried to cut it away, certainly helped him come to the conclusion that she was expecting this and was happy to have it happen.

The fact that she moaned slightly at the touch of the cool night air on her nethers helped, and that she wasn't in any way fighting against the bindings. If anything, Markus had to say the way she was shaking her ass at him was quite inviting, and the glistening trails of her arousal were lit up in the fire light like a runway telling him 'right here, jackass! This way!'

Far be it from him not to oblige.

About half an hour later, he sat back against the log with the Vampira leaning on his shoulder, the remnants of their activities slowly leaking out of her onto the ground. Grace sat nearby, watching the whole thing with an almost clinical eye, poking at the fire occasionally or putting another stick into the flames.

Grace had watched the whole thing. She knew her Tamer was either telling the truth, and thusly probably fit the description of 'idiot god,' or he was a madman with delusions of grandeur. Nothing new when it came to Tamers, from all she'd seen or heard from the others in the Harem. Still. She'd watched for the sake of seeing an actual Taming for herself from the outside perspective.

She'd watched as the Vampira's eyes cleared up slightly. The firelight hadn't done her any favors, but she could see the girl's eyes get sharper, more focused even as that focus turned inwards towards what she was feeling. She could see that the bat-like girl had _wanted_ him to fuck her brains out. When he began thrusting into her erratically, she'd smiled and tenses, Grace assuming she was helping it along, and moaning. She knew what it felt like when her Tamer 'pounded her like a drum' in his own words. She knew that her own biology demanded it frequently. She knew because she was getting excited just by watching. He'd said that Arachnae were one of his favorite breeds…

She wondered why, even as one of her hands made its way to give her a bit of relief by going under her shirt and playing with one of her nipples, drawing circles around it and thee soft flesh of her breast. She wondered why, out of the hundreds of breeds of Pokegirls, one would like hers. Let alone any other, really. It seemed odd to have 'favorite breeds.' He'd told her he used to love Infernals, but switched to Celestials as one of his 'favorites?' Or maybe he'd just figured he liked Celestials 'more?'

She watched as her Tamer took out a cigarette and lit it, leaning back slightly with the log supporting his lower back. The Vampira's head was on his shoulder as she caught her own breath… And then the Vampira spoke.

"Thanks for that." She said, sounding as tired as she looked. "I appreciate the return to sanity."

Markus glanced at her, careful not to shuffle himself too much. "Domesticate?" He asked.

The Vampira shook her head. "Feralborn, through and through, but I've been Tamed before. Learned English from a Tamer who helped me out. He had a full harem, and mostly just wanted to 'give me a spin.'" She laughed.

"Wow. Helpful, but a douche." Markus said.

"Kind of. He let me tag along with him for a while, and his G-Pointdexter taught me how to speak English. Then, one day, I lost track of him. Figured he'd moved on during the day, ya know?" She shrugged as much as she could before continuing. "After him? A string of one-shots, one two-pump-chump, and then nothing. Then I began getting more and more broody, until I felt the 'mistress' nearby, and joined her little buffet." She spat out the word 'Mistress' as though it were poison.

"Back to your own self, then?" Markus asked, looking at the Vampira fully, now.

"Yep. Back to sanity and not going back to being a slave, thanks. Leastwise not a slave to a goddamned Vampire. Fucking whore." She groused some more.

"Well, I could put you in a Pokeball and claim you as mine if ya want?" Markus offered. ""You're cute as hell, and I've always had a thing for goth chicks… but my plan was always to find all of the Vampira in the area, then the Vampire, and catch the lot of you." He explained.

The Vampira's face scrunched up slightly, partially in disgust at the thought of the Vampire again, and partially in contemplation of the offer. "You're just gonna sell us alll off and keep her, aren't you?" She asked, somewhat dreading the answer.

"Fuck no. Much as I want a Vampire? I'm not stupid. If you get along with the rest of the Harem and she doesn't? I'll sell her ass off to someone who can deal with that shit. I've learned, through very intimate and personal experience, that much as I might want something? It might not be in my best interests. You? You could be very useful, just like any Vampira. I need someone who can keep watch at night, keep us company in the night and not worry about shit sneaking up on us when we're camping… and I won't lie? A Dark/Flying type is useful. Not on my 'most wanted' list, but you're cute. And I have a notablee weak spot for cute things." He gestured to Grace.

Grace looked utterly confused. She was anything but cute, and the look she gave her Tamer said as much.

"See what I mean?" He asked, looking at Grace with a mischievous grin. "Cute as a button, that."

Grace sighed, but went back to poking the fire with a stick.

When the sun rose, the Vampira seemed to lose all of her energy and yawned, falling asleep almost immediately. Just in time, as a spot in the tent had opened up with Pythia exiting and making herself some instant-coffee with a pot of boiling water and one of the packets they'd brought with them.

Scrying, using the hair of the now-sleeping Vampira as a trace, showed the way she and the pack she was with had taken. It was only through the woods on foot for maybe a few miles, then through the air which took the view of the scrying bowl to what Markus recognized despite the years of disuse and lack of upkeep, as a farmhouse in the middle of a clearing. Somehow it had stood up to the test of elements, uncaring Pokegirls, and lord only knows what else.

"Well." Markus blinked at the vision within the bowl. "That's not exactly what I was expecting, but I guess for now we wait. Tonight we should probably have two people on watch…"

Pythia shrugged. "Sadly, master, I can't help you much in trying to peer into the future. I already tried, and the most I could get waas you walking out of the woods near Lavenderriere. Before that everything's too turbulent, and after that everything's too varied." She sighed. She really wanted to just evolve and get it over with, maybe as a Sorceress she'd get more reliable visions.

Still, when Markus put an arm over Pythia's shoulders and led her towards a tree, sitting down with her on his lap, she relaxed into it. It was nice to just be held, some times.

Markus certainly didn't mind. He got to have a nice soft blonde who was absurdly easy to please on his lap. Soft not just of skin, but in her choice of clothing. It was nice how some of her clothing would be just the right amount of 'fluffy' to make her shoulder a perfect napping spot, or just make her extra-comfortable to have on his lap. Markus knew he was weird. He didn't care.

The day went slowly at first but after a brief nap next to the tree, with Grace keeping watch and gathering other small game which was stupid enough to get tangled up in her triplines and webs, Markus finally woke up and called out the whole of his current Harem.

Xiao immediately set to work on her exercises, dragging Pythia in as Salohiel oversaw things. The Archangel gave tips and corrections as she could, but ultimately she was doing her own thing as well. Pythia's ability to fight was laughable at best, but keeping in shape was important. As Xiao had her running through basic 'warm-up' exercises, it was actually kind of funny to watch Pythia struggle through what Markus remembered as the first 10 minutes of any given Karate class.

Not that Markus hadn't ever had problems with that routine, mind. It was just kind of fun to watch Pythia work for it. And watching a group of hot women working out was certainly far from unpleasant. Grace, with others awake, had taken her chance to sit down on Markus' lap, sans pants or underwear, and scratch a few itches that had developed… Mainly by getting herself Tamed.

There were days when Markus definitely questioned the wisdom of having two High Libido Pokegirls in the same Harem… And one Average Pokegirl who just liked getting fucked seven ways to sunday. Those days tended to die a horrible death when he was balls deep in either of the High-Libido Pokegirls.

So when, hours of training later, the Vampira looked out of the tent she'd awakened within to see an Archangel running teamwork drills with the Spider-girl who'd caught her, a girl with a big-ass sword, and a skinny little blonde with a funny hat? She was somewhat confused.

Markus, doing his own exercises, a regime developed by Salohiel to 'help keep her Tamer fit and healthy,' noted the head poking through the tent flaps and stopped in the middle of his bridge-exercise, where he was basically bent over backwards and supporting himself with his feet and his head to try and build up his core muscles.

"Hey there, bat-girl." He said, getting Salohiel's attention as well, causing her to look over at the red-eyed brunette looking out of the tent.

"Markus…" Salohiel looked back to her Tamer, a slight edge to her voice. "Who in the hell is that?"

"Right now? She's 'bat-girl' because I suck at naming things unless it involves some semi-religious symbolism, and even then I don't know what I'm doing because for all I know your name means something completely inappropriate." He said. "But _what_ she is? She's a Vampira that grace caught. Tamed her last night so she'd either lead us to the Vampire, which she confirmed exists, or at the very least she'd be a good night-guard. She speaks english, apparently. Learned it from a transcient Tamer who didn't catch her 'cause he apparently had a full Harem and… Honestly that whole story sounded fake as hell, but I just went with it because there's no reason to get upset over that kind of shit."

Salohiel sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly. Just when she thought her Tamer was taking things more seriously… "Why woud any tamer not catch a Feral, teach them English the old-fashioned way, and then just abandon them?" She asked.

"Fuck if I know." Markus said, sitting up fully to look at his Harem Alpha. "I just didn't see the need to press the issue."

"And she can explain herself, you know…" The Vampira said, loud enough for both of them to hear her. "She's got ears, and is right here…"

Salohiel rounded on the girl, now. "OK. So explain." She said, putting her hands on her hips and folding her wings up behind her.

"Fine. I _was_ Feralborn. I was caught, Tamed, and then abandoned in goddamned Sapphron City on Sadie Poken's Day, because my idiot Tamer just didn't care enough about me to stick around once he'd gotten a full Harem of sloppy-seconds. Ass. Hole." she nearly growled out the last two words. "So, there I was, without a Tamer. Eventually I started going Feral, because being a Dark Pokegirl in a city filled with Psychics was bad mojo, and then I found myself on this route, where I found the Vampire I've been serving. Far as I'm concerned? I've been Feral all my damned life and never had a Tamer before."

Abbreviated the story might have been, but Markus was inclined to believe it. He'd kind of figured, given the nature of the world, that your average Tamer thought mainly with their dick rather than their brain… if they had a dick. He'd seen a resurgence of 'Female Tamer' stories before he found himself hoisted rather effectively by his own petard and stuck in the world he'd once written in.

Salohiel's eyes narrowed. She didn't entirely trust the story. The Vampira had already lied once. What was to stop her from doing so again? In any case, she apparently didn't scan as being owned by anyone, which meant that if she HAD a Pokeball before, it was broken, and by the laws of the Indigo League that meant she was 'fair game' for any wandering shmuck of a Tamer. Including hers.

"I don't like sloppy seconds." Markus said. "It's always given me the creeps. But meh." he shrugged, looking to Salohiel. "I think she's cute. Not only that? But she's got an ass you could bounce a coin off, and could be useful as a night-guard for the camp. A Dedicated night guard so we could get some more reliable sleep."

"And if, Gods above help us, you catch and Tame the Vampire? What then? Don't go getting attached to every Feral you think is 'cute' Markus." Salohiel said, almost snapping.

"Oi! I'm not 'getting attached.' I'm trying to go with the flow, here. Plans are good as long as they're not rigid and inflexible. We got one of the Vampira, which was part of the main goal. Now we're gonna get the rest of 'em tonight, and during the Full Moon we're going to go after the Vampire herself." When he saw Salohiel begin to speak, he cut her off. He didn't want to, but he also didn't want to get a lecture. "I know, Salohiel. She'll be strongest at night on a Full Moon. I know. But if we beat her when she's at her strongest, Tame her, and THEN try to work with her? She'll be a lot more pliable. Vampires never respect a Tamer who goes after them at their weakest. It's almost 'Neo Iczel' in nature. They'll refuse to obey someone who couldn't take them at their strongest."

Salohiel's mouth closed with an audible 'click.' She didn't like it. She thought Markus was being somewhat like his old self, going after pokegirls he thought were 'hot.' But ultimately? He was the Tamer, she was his Pokegirl. The Hierarchical part of Salohiel's mind enjoyed the thought that Markus was still making his own decisions. A weak leader easily led by his subordinates did not make for a good unit, but she still didn't like the idea that he wanted to keep the Vampira.

A small part of her simply thought that the Harem was simply expanding too fast. She'd pushed for the Arachnae, because they made for excellent trappers. She agreed with having Pythia and Xiao involved because a Fighting Type and a Magic Type were useful… But a Vampira? Yeah, they could be good Night-time guards, but… A Vampira AND a Vampire?

Salohiel was still adjusting to not having her Tamer all to herself, new personality or no. She'd had 4 years to herself, 4 years to get used to him, and 4 years to figure out her place in the scheme of things. This 'new' Markus? She felt almost like she was back to Square-one.

Markus, meanwhile, watched as the Vampira withdrew back into the tent and went back to his exercise. Salohiel followed suit, if only to keep up appearances, and began putting Xiao through her paces. The day went back to normal, with Markus spending the evening with just Salohiel and Grace outside. Pyshia, Xiao and the Vampira were situated in the tent, sleeping.

Markus spent the evening hours with an arm over Salohiel's shoulders, unhindered by wings which she'd hidden away for the moment, and the other arm over Grace's shoulders. It was nice. Quiet. He'd loved camping as a kid, because it gave him a chance to get away from everything. Here? He was literally away from _everything_. No debts, no bills to pay, nothing. He was free to just do whatever the fuck he wanted. With Salohiel and Grace? He could talk, joke, be inappropriate all he fucking liked and not have to worry. Sure, there were moral problems with the situation. But if he couldn't take the time to at least enjoy the view, smell the roses and appreciate the good things? He'd probably go mad.

So that's just what he did. He appreciated the sunset, a pair of sunglasses over his eyes to help for most of it. He appreciated the feeling of having two very attractive women next to him. He appreciated the green of the forest, the sounds of birds and insects… He appreciated the campfire, and the wood he'd gotten to keep it going.

He definitely appreciated when the sun went down and the Vampira finally woke up, coming outside and walked over towards him and the two Pokegirls. It actually did look like she was wearing a dark cloak. Reminded him of the old Gargoyles cartoon when Goliath would walk around with his wings like that. The fact that beneath it she was completely naked helped. When she sat down in front of him and leaned back using his legs as a rest he was disinclined to stop her. Salohiel took his sunglasses away when the sun had fully set and the four of them simply sat there, enjoying how many stars they could see in the night sky.

After a few minutes, Grace sighed and stood up. "It's time for me to monitor the triplines." she said, changing into her more arachnid form and scuttling to the center of her web in the tree branches, settling in like any normal spider waiting for prey.

The Vampira, meanwhile, took this as a chance to sit next to him, putting his arm over her shoulders and leaning into him.

"I still haven't decided if I'm going to keep you, at least not fully." Markus said, still letting his arm go over the Bat-girl's shoulders. "I mean, I know Salohiel has reservations."

Salohiel simply nodded her head. It was a little awkward since she was leaning on his shoulder, but she did it anyway.

The bat-girl tensed slightly before relaxing when Markus' hand began tracing small circles on her upper arm. "I know." she said. "I'm new. New things are either an obvious threat or a potential threat." she nuzzled her face into his chest a bit, leaning closer to him. "But you're not a cruel man. You won't just abandon me out in the middle of god's nowhere. If you were a cruel man, you'd have shoved me in a Pokeball, leaving me Feral until you could sell me, or you'd have Tamed me, gotten what you wanted from me, 'balled me, and then you'd sell me off at the earliest available opportunity. Or you'd have just killed me. There are a hundred different things you could have done, but you let me sleep through the day. You're letting me sit close to you now without a collar or a Pokeball… I think I could do much worse for a prospective Tamer."

Markus hesitated to mention that's almost exactly what he'd done with a couple dozen Pokegirls already. Caught them and sold them… but one takes the small victories where one can. He really did think she was cute as all hell. "Still. If you're sticking around? You'll need a name."

The Vampira shrugged. "Give me one after you've decided to keep me." she said. "That way you're not 'getting attached' to a Pokegirl you might not keep. Hell, for all I care? Catch the rest of the group I was with, keep us all, and you could have a whole squad of us around."

Markus was slightly put off by that, but he nodded. Salohiel didn't want him getting 'attached' to Pokegirls he wasn't going to keep, he didn't want to get attached… he'd always yelled at the Pokemon cartoon because of the stupid episode wherein Ash traded his goddamned Butterfree for a Raticate, then eventually let the Butterfree go anyway, and the stupid need the produced felt to have Ash basically restart with every new region, leaving behind his massively powerful teams of Pokemon, likely at Oak's lab causing all kinds of hell.

The night progressed, with those who hadn't taken naps (Markus and Salohiel) retiring to the tent and the others keeping guard. Markus 'caught' the Vampira in a Pokeball, then gave out a bunch to the members of his Harem who would be awake for the night keeping guard…

When Markus woke up, the sun was rising. He'd slept through the whole damned night. When he woke to find about a dozen Pokeballs lined up in his tent, Salohiel not next to him, and the Vampira sleeping like Morpheus owed her money and she needed to collect? He was slightly confused. Sleep left his brain slowly. Too slowly for him to realize what the hell was going on for at least five minutes.

So he sat there and blinked at the pokeballs for five minutes, his brain starting up and realizing what had happened. Once he got outside, his pants being the most difficult part of his ensamble to put on as usual, he found the named members of his Harem sitting around the fire, relaxing and roasting marshmallows out of a bag he'd had in his pack. It seemed like one part celebration and one part coming down off an adrenaline high.

It was then that it truly hit Markus… It struck him like a fucking lightning bolt just how little he was actually needed. He'd slept, and Salohiel had awakened to help fight off what appeared to be a small onslaught of Vampira, if the few corpses too injured to be captured were anything to go by, and… they'd handled it. They'd handled it quite well, given that with Salohiel's Aura of Healing up and working, the members of his Harem seemed to be perfectly fine. He basically existed in this dynamic solely to provide them with a means of staying sane, and legitimacy in a League that didn't think they deserved the same rights as humans.

That's about it.

Markus had a few thoughts on this. The first was that he could throw some kind of tantrum and get literally nothing done, if anything it would in fact set him back. The second was that he could accept it and move on, looking for a way to contribute to the world in which he found himself and trying to find out just what in the flying fuck had happened to him to get him there. The third was that he could try to make himself feel better by consoling himself in the need the Pokegirls in his Harem had for _him_ specifically at that time to keep themselves sane.

Out of those, option two felt like the one that wouldn't both destroy everything he'd been trying to do in improving himself and not set him back in his more immediate material goals. The upshot was that he had about twelve Vampira safely tucked away in Pokeballs, about five more dead in the forest due to necessary complications of 'they're trying to kill me, so I killed them back first' and he had a group of Pokegirls who by and large he liked having around. Even if they didn't need him for anything more than 'a steady source of Vitamin D.'

That and Markus was getting seriously tired of contemplating the morality of his situation, the morality of the world itself, and his own uselessness in light of the omnipresent fact that no matter how much he tried he'd never actually be able to stand toe-to-toe with a Pokegirl who specialized in any given field. He now understood why the community had always gotten really intense about those arguments, then it petered off because there was literally no way of reconciling things. His modern sensibilities were a liability at best, a migraine waiting to happen at worst. His contemplations on morality took away from time he could be doing something productive with his life.

So, he simply ignored the little voice in his head telling him he was useless and walked over to the fire, sat down in between Salohiel and Xiao, and smiled at the small foursome of Pokegirls.

"Hey, ladies." he said. "How'd the fight go?"

"It went as well as could be expected." Salohiel said. She'd seen Markus' face go through various emotions. Emotions that over four years of being bound to the man she'd learned to read. Different personality or no, his tells at least remained the same. He was considering his position, and just what he was actually good for. "They attacked around 1 A.M. and we fought them off. I killed a couple, Xiao killed a couple, and Grace killed one, but we all tried to keep the killing to a minimum for the sake of capture."

"Sadly? Poison doesn't tend to care overmuch for whether you want someone to survive it. I'm still trying to measure doses properly." Grace said.

"And a Guan Dao isn't exactly a precision weapon." Xiao noted.

Pythia simply smiled at her Tamer. She'd told him what would likely happen. She was right. It felt good to be right on occasion.

Salohiel offered a roasted marshmallow to Markus, which he took before speaking. "Thanks, girls. I appreciate you guys letting me sleep, but… Why didn't you wake me up, Salohiel? I know you know I love my sleep, but I'm curious."

"Because." the Archangel said. "Three of us have been training for weeks now, and needed a proper field test against multiple opponents. One of us is new, and I needed to see how she'd fare without you feeding her orders, and the Vampira we caught yesterday needed to be given a field test as well, so I could evaluate her." She knew her Tamer relied on her a lot for things, these days. He'd been asking her to handle more and more as the Alpha, which was good since it'd free him up to do things she literally couldn't, but humans had such fragile egos. And Markus wanted to be seen as necessary. He was in many respects, but since his radical change of personality and memory? He seemed to have forgotten more than a few of those reasons.

"For someone who claims to have written stories of our world, shaping it to your every perverted desire? You don't actually seem to know a lot about it, do you?" Grace asked.

Markus laughed. "Yeah. I'm the 'Idiot God' alright. When I wrote stories? They focused on one person's perspective, almost never on the over-arching scheme of the world itself since most of that had already been done, and the bits that hadn't that i took up? Different continent. I could tell you everything about Slot League culture, design, even architecture if they followed my ideas for it, even the ones I never actually wrote down. But it seems that no matter how much one writes, there's always something new to discover."

"Some say…" Salohiel started, "That the Thousand Gods created the world in order to explore it, to find out more about themselves in the doing. Albert Einstein once asked whether the Divine had any choice in the creation of the universe. Maybe that's what's happened here, then? Or maybe you and your friends simply tapped into this world unconsciously, wrote about it, and thought you'd created it?" she offered.

"Existential bullshit aside? I kicked ass." Xiao said, grinning and leaning onto Markus' shoulder. "And I expect a reward. I'm thinking you give me the newbie for a day, a deluxe double-ended dildo with all the bells and whistles, a few nipple-clamps, and a rubber gimp-suit, and I'll have her literally eating out of the palm of my hand by the time you get her back." she said, her grin turning lascivious quickly.

"I could do with some new clothes." Grace noted.

"And I'd like to expand my spellbook collection… To actually having a spellbook collection, mostly." Pythia piped up.

Salohiel just shrugged. "I need nothing I can't summon for myself, but a date-night that doesn't involve us sitting in a Pokecenter room watching netflix and eating pizza would be nice."

Markus listened and sighed, as he almost felt his wallet growing thinner, despite not actually having a physical wallet anymore.

When the morning dragged on, all but Salohiel and Markus fell asleep in the tent. Markus sat with Salohiel doing breathing exercises for a while before going into basic fighting techniques and physical training for the both of them. Salohiel obviously outpaced him, but Markus kept it up nonetheless. He wasn't going to be a useless lump, damn it!

"You DO realize you're needed, more than just as a dick, right?" Salohiel asked while they were in the middle of going through forms for basic Tai Kwan Do. "You're the rock the Harem gathers around. You keep us Tamed, but you also keep us grounded. That's a tamer's job. To train us, help us use our power the _right_ way…"

Markus sighed and nodded, going into a series of high-blocks as part of the form and trying to keep his footwork correct. His right knee had begun to sting a little, but Salohiel's Aura of Healing was keeping it bearable. "I know. But it doesn't help when I feel useless to know that I'm not." he said, chuckled at the paradox. "Feelings are neither rational or quantifiable, which means they can neither be controlled or rejected. As a wise person once said? 'We never defeat our demons. We merely learn to live above them.'"

"Sounds wise enough. Just doesn't give you any hint on how to go about learning." Salohiel seemingly groused. She was hoping her Tamer could come to this on his own. He just needed a bit of pushing to take the last few steps.

"Simple. You learn. Wisdom grows not from age but from experience, but only if you let it. The most experienced man can be as unwise as any other, but the experienced man who learned from those experiences gains in wisdom." Markus said. "You learn that your emotions have a place, to learn from them and to take that which will help you to grow while pruning the rest and letting it go."

Salohiel smiled. Her job was done. Now all Markus had to do was actually take the words to heart, rather than be able to quote them. Something most Celestials learn early in their lives… All the wise counsel in the world is worthless when the advisor is speaking to someone who can't accept the words.

The day passed quietly, with Salohiel correcting Markus' footwork and form as needed, both of them taking a break around noon to give Salohiel a temporary 'reward' for the last night's fight, and Markus setting up for making dinner/breakfast for the Harem. Why Salohiel didn't need to sleep so much? Markus wasn't sure. He wasn't sure Archangels HAD the 'sleepless' enhancement, but he had been meaning to revise them before he'd found himself in that world, so who knew? Maybe someone had done it already, or maybe they'd just been utterly wrong about them to begin with. Chicken, meet Egg. Which one came first?

The sun setting and the moon rising, full and bright in the sky, signaled the awakening of the Vampira who had been sleeping in the tent. She made her way out and latched sleepily onto Markus' arm as he sat, reading a book on his Pokedex.

"Good evening, Master…" She said, leaning onto him and nearly rubbing her breasts on his arm. "Were you impressed by the haul from last night?"

"Very much, so." Markus said, putting his Pokedex away and looking at the sleepy Bat-girl. She had her wings slightly parted so he could easily see she was still nude under the wing-cloak. Her breasts were, in fact, pressed up against his arm, and his hand was dangerously close to the junction between her legs. "But for tonight I think it best if we keep on our guard. I've read one too many horror stories wherein the main heroes got frisky on a full moon out in the middle of bumfuck nowhere and got killed by being inattentive." he said, using his free hand to ruffle the girl's hair a little.

"Fine, Master." she said, pulling away slightly. "I'll call in that debt after you've caught, tamed, and claimed that Vampire you're after."

"You know? I'd imagine you'd be a lot more against trying to get attached to me, knowing I plan to at least try to keep that Vampire. The Vampira entry always said ya'll hate Vampires once you're Tamed, 'cause you don't want to end up being forced to go Feral and do the whole 'slavish devotion' thing with them again…" Markus noted, looking at the Vampira in confusion.

"Well, I won't say I'm overly comfortable with it, but if it means I get a steady Tamer who won't just abandon me because they found some hot new piece of ass they want to smash? I'll take what I can get." the bat-girl said, shrugging slightly before leaning back to sit fully on her own. "I'll get to guarding stuff. She'll probably attack tonight, since I'm fairly certain we got all of the Vampira serving her. My memory's a little fuzzy though, so my count isn't exactly trustworthy."

Not twenty minutes after the Vampira had taken up a post in a tree to watch for incoming threats, Markus' attention was drawn by her pointing silently at a small pale dot in the night sky, highlighted by the moon.

Taking out a pair of binoculars, Markus looked at the 'dot' and saw exactly what he'd hoped and feared. In the full moon, he could see the girl a little more clearly. Pale skin? Yep. feral grimace showing off elongated fangs? Oh yeah. Completely buck-nude? Kinda hot, but yes. And she was flying right at them on a pair of wings seemingly made of smoke. As she got closer, Markus could make out that her nails were elongated as well. Still, she was kind of cute, in that 'I'm going to kill all of the things' way.

"She's on her way, ladies!" Markus shouted. "Grace? I want you ready for capture and binding. Pythia? Long-range pot shots with Mystic Bolts. Xiao? Stay back. She's a Ghost-type, and Fighting purely physically is probably a bad plan, but be ready to back Salohiel up. Salohiel? You're up. Celestial attacks are preferable, but try not to kill her. If you do? Oh smegging well. I'll live and collect the bounty."

With orders given, the Harem got into position. Pythia hid behind a tree while Salohiel stepped fully into the open and unfurled all of her wings. Xiao stood nearby with her Guan Dao ready, but only in so much as to take a potshot here or there if the opportunity presented itself. Grace, meanwhile, scurried in her battle-form up into the trees.

When the Vampire landed, Markus could see far more clearly the features which night had obscured, the moonlight being able to do only so much. Bright red eyes framed by filthy black hair which hung lank in thick tangled groupings. Her pale skin was almost dayglow bright up close. If she laid down on a beach in the sunlight Markus was fairly certain the only means he'd have to spot her would be her hair. Thankfully, she was unlikely to be doing so, since Vampires and Daylight tend to not get along overly well.

The moment she touched the ground, she was put on the backpedal, snarling and foaming slightly at the edges of her mouth as Salohiel swiped at her with quick slashes of a summoned golden sword sparking with Celestial energies. Markus watched and motioned for Xiao to hold back since Salohiel, it seemed, liked to get close to her opponent when she could. Markus watched as she cut and nicked the Vampire's arms, which the Feral used to keep her strikes away from her vitals. The wounds sizzled and smoked as they were made, filling the air with a slight ting of cooking flesh.

Not the best of smells, combined with her already rather pungent odor. She likely hadn't bathed in weeks.

But Salohiel? Salohiel was like a work of art in one-on-one combat. Watching her move, dodging attempts to bite her, using her Wings as shields when she had to protect herself from a swipe of bloodied claws, only to take a shot at the Vampire's legs with her sword moving through the air like a ribbon and striking like a viper… It was, in it's own violent way, beautiful. Markus almost missed the chance Grace had to capture the Vampire in webbing. The two combatants were moving far faster than Markus had ever seen someone move outside of movies with good special-effects budgets, or clever editing, so when the Vampire was nearly pinned to the tree in which grace sat by her shoulder, Salohiel's sword hissing and burning her flesh as it dug through her into the wood, Markus snapped out of it and shouted.

"Grace! Now! Paralytic Venom and webbing!"

Grace, like a monster right out of some kid's nightmare, dropped down onto the Vampire and quickly began wrapping the injured Pokegirl in webbing. She took a quick shot at biting the girl's injured shoulder, her fangs piercing the flesh just barely. It was enough, however, as despite the girl's continued struggles, Grace was able to wrap the girl in thick strands of webbing. The struggles got weaker and weaker, ending in the Vampire being wrapped up tight in a somewhat awkward position. Her uninjured arm was reaching behind her head while her injured arm was held securely against her chest. One of her legs was bent against her, while the other was extended. At least at first. Grace moved the leg up next to her other, leaving her in a very strange almost-kneeling pose.

By the end, she had to have been wrapped up in nearly half a foot of webbing, and Grace looked tired. Salohiel, meanwhile, let her sword vanish into the ether from whence it came while she watched impassively.

Her desire to just smite the girl was still there. She wanted to just end the Vampire and not waste either her own time, or her Tamer's, trying to keep the girl. If she was Feralborn? She was already more trouble than she was worth. But no matter what it looked like the bounty was theirs.

Markus watched in fascination. Sure, he'd seen spiders wrapping things in webbing-cocoons before. He'd even seen Grace do it. But it was always fascinating to see her insectile legs move her prey around while webbing was produced from her spinnerets. When she finished, he moved up to pat her on her shoulder.

"Very well done, grace. Thank you." He said, looking from her to her handiwork.

"I am VERY hungry, Markus." Grace said. "I'm going to need to either eat that webbing when you're done or I'm going to need a lot of protein soon."

Markus nodded. "I've got some meat I've been saving in my pack. Pork, mostly, but some chicken as well. I'll make up some stir-fry with noodles, eggs, and the meats."

Grace nodded, and slinked back up into the tree to her main web.

Next Markus went to Salohiel and gave the Archangel, looking for all the world like a mythical Archangel figure of old, a big hug. "Thank you, Salohiel. You were beautiful, there. Kind of made me remember how someone could make a symphony based on a battle."

Salohiel relaxed into the hug and wrapped her arms around her Tamer. "Just remember that. I'm the Alpha, I'm beautiful, and I'm awesome." She replied, grinning a little.

"An Angel with an Ego." Markus chuckled, pulling back before kissing her cheek. "How lucky I am that you're mine."

With that said, Pythia and Xiao came closer to look at the webbed-up, paralyzed, Vampire. Salohiel kissed Markus on his cheek in return before heading to the tent, her wings folding up and vanishing before she plopped herself into the sleeping bag, her blonde hair splaying out slightly as she went to sleep.

Markus chuckled and looked at the Vampire, at last. Pythia and Xiao were both poking the paralyzed Pokegirl with a couple of sticks… The Vampira Markus had, admittedly, gotten slightly attached to whom he was mentally calling 'Number 1,' had come down as well and begun poking the Vampire as well. A bit harder than the others, but Markus pretended not to notice.

"Alright, Ladies. I need to bring this poor lady back to the land of the self-aware." He said, moving next to the webbed up and nearly-prostrated Vampire. "And I'd prefer it without an audience. Xiao? Take her," he pointed to 'Vampira Number 1,' "To the bushes. You're in charge, so have fun. I'll work on the other stuff when we get to a town."

Xiao, energetic Fighting Type that she was, smiled wide, grabbed the Vampira 'round her hips, hefted the Pokegirl over her shoulder, and rushed into the bushes, giggling all the way.

"Pythia? If you could go and make sure Salohiel doesn't wake up with tangled hair? I'd appreciate it. And Grace?" He looked up into the tree where Grace sat on a branch, "... Ya know what? You just sit there. You earned it. Once this one's been Tamed, You and I can sit by the fire for a while."

Pythia smiled and nodded, moving to the tent and closing the flap after her. She'd brush the Archangel's hair while she slept and make sure it was properly put up so it wouldn't get tangled in the night… Then she'd probably just read on Markus' Pokedex for a while.

Grace nodded silently and rested. She was hungry, damn it all. But she'd wait. For now.

Markus finally looked back to the Vampire, bound and paralyzed. Not even her eyes were free from the webs encasing her, but she was in a good position for this. Grace probably knew this, which would be why she moved the Vampire's once-extended leg into it's current position. Her ass was pointed practically straight up. All it'd take is a bit of effort to uncover it. With a pocket-knife cutting away at the thick, sticky webbing, Markus made progress in getting to the pale flesh beneath.

After five minutes of work, with a few minutes taken off to clean his knife every so often, he finally had a perfect view of the Vampire's vagina and ass. Like a ripe, juicy peach staring him in the face. A part of him wanted to scream. The girl was paralyzed via poison, tied up in what could only be a bondage fetish gone horribly awry, and he was thinking of shoving his dick into her and taking her to pound-town. A larger part told him logically that she was Feral, and this was literally the only way to bring her out of it… Other than maybe Oral, and he wasn't sticking his dick in her mouth. Not with those fangs.

Nope. Not happening. Not only was it just as bad, but it had the distinct possibility of the Paralysis running out and her biting it off. Fuck. That. Noise.

So, he undid his pants, letting them drop to his ankles before stepping out of them and moving up to the girl, sitting down right behind her and pulling the cheeks apart to get a better view.

Whatever he'd been expecting, thinking she might be dry and uninterested, he was completely wrong. The girl was practically dripping the moment she felt his hands on her ass. Within a minute of looking, touching, and inspecting every inch he could see of her body, the Vampire was literally dripping, glistening drops of evident arousal making it quite clear that, even if her conscious mind was buried under the weight of her Feral mind-state, her Libido was still active, running, and ready for action.

So when he slid his dick into the warm and sopping wet hole, he was surprised to find that it was still relatively tight, despite her body still being paralyzed. Of course, the poison used only cut off conscious muscular control. Autonomic muscle reactions were still functioning properly… At least that's what he thought might be the case.

There days he hated the random trivia he knew and wished he'd focused more on specific things. Like right now? He was being drawn to focus solely on the feeling of the Vampire's pussy wrapping around his dick and unconsciously trying to wring him of everything it could.

When he got comfortable, buried balls-deep in the girl's pussy and feeling the wet warmth like she was trying to melt his dick, he established a rhythm. He withdrew until only the head of his dick was left inside her only to slowly push back inside. The cool night air on his balls, exacerbated by the dripping moisture of her arousal, certainly helped him contain the urge to just pound away and cum as fast as possible. He wanted to enjoy this as much as he could.

With that in mind he began going at her a bit harder, smacking his hips against hers before pulling back. He could see the paralysis beginning to wear off as her hand, wrapped up in webbing, began to flex beneath the silk. Her legs tenses up slightly, but only for a moment. The paralytic was still going… How long had he been at this? He pushed in slowly and pulled out a few times before he felt her pussy clamp down on him and seemingly have a seizure around him. A gush of warm liquid washed out over his balls as he heard an unintelligible groan from within the cocoon before it was just too much for his brain to control consciously. He began hammering in and out of the bound-up Vampire before burying himself as deep as he could into her and painting her insides with ropes of sticky white.

After a few more small thrusts, trying as hard as he could to get deeper into her, he was finished and he leaned over her bound form to rest for a moment, letting his arms, previously practically glued to her hips, hold him up as his hands pushed into the soft dirt.

When he recovered, he began unbinding the somewhat docile girl, leaving her arms and legs bound but removing the rest and handing it off to Grace, who made her way down when she saw he was done Taming the Vampire. As Markus passed her the webbing, she ate it. Several species of spider did that, but most of them were Orb-weavers, not the Brown Recluse on which Grace seemed to be based. The Vampire's arms were bound anew with some of the webbing before Grace seemed to get an idea and dove into the vampire's pussy, tongue-first while waving her now-human looking behind at her Tamer.

Some days? It really did pay to be a Tamer. When the Vampire began moaning and her muscle-control returned to her enough for her to get into it physically? She practically shoved herself back into Grace's face while Markus pushed Grace forward from behind… Looked like Grace was taking after Xiao… This would be _hilarious._

Note the sarcasm.

/End

Final notes: I know. I go into the morality thing a lot. I'm trying to describe how this wonderful stupid self-insert vehicle could possibly end with myself, whom i consider a man of moral fortitude willing to stick by my principles, getting into the world of Pokegirls, willing to take advantage of a girl paralyzed and bound up in 6in of webbing with comparable tensile strength to steel. I'll write up what Xiao does with the Vampira ((I'm leaving the name to a vote, since this chapter will mark the time of publication for me)) in the next chapter… I know, again, that I said I try to avoid Gil/girl scenes, but I've been told (repeatedly) that I don't actually suck at them… so feel free to disagree with me and tell me I'm wasting my time.

Now, back to my other stories. I'll be posting new chapters as I write them. These 5 took me 5 damned months… granted 1-4 only took me, like, 2 months. The 5th one took me a long fucking time… gimme a break.

Review, Follow, poodles… Have fun, folks.


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